Arvind Kejriwal resigns as CM; confidant Atishi to succeed him — what next for Delhi?

Arvind Kejriwal submitted his resignation as chief minister of Delhi to Lieutenant Governor (L-G) VK Saxena on Tuesday, September 17. Kejriwal’s confidant, Atishi –  nominated by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) legislators to succeed Kejriwal,  – has staked a claim to form the next government in the national capital.

The churn in Delhi politics comes four days after Kejriwal walked out of Tihar jail following a Supreme Court order granting him bail in the excise policy-linked money laundering case filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Kejriwal also got bail in another case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the central agency that arrested him in March.

What next for the AAP government, Atishi and Arvind Kejriwal?

Poll Season

The change of guard in Delhi comes at a crucial time. Not just because almost the entire top leadership of the AAP – Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh – is facing money-laundering charges in the Delhi excise policy case, but also because Assembly polls in the national capital are scheduled for February 2025.

Kejriwal, the AAP supremo, has demanded early elections, sometime in November, along with the Maharashtra polls. Kejriwal and his former deputy Sisodia have said they would go to the people to seek their support and return to the top jobs only after the people’s verdict allows them to.

While securing the CM’s office is a milestone in her career and an opportunity to prove her leadership abilities, it also comes with a host of challenges for Atishi – a first-time MLA. Her advisory and ministerial roles in the AAP government, notwithstanding.

Claim for Government

Along with Kejriwal, his cabinet has also resigned. The L-G will send Kejriwal’s and his ministers’ resignation and Atishi’s claim to the President of India. Once approved, the President will send it back to the L-G who will then invite the new CM to take oath.

Atishi will also need to form a fresh council of ministers.

Once in office, Atishi, 43, would be the third woman to be the chief minister of Delhi. She will be joining the likes of BJP stalwart late Sushma Swaraj and Congress veteran late Sheila Dikshit.

By choosing a woman chief minister, Kejriwal is not just picking, perhaps, his best bid, but also wooing women voters in poll season. Atishi, as Delhi’s finance minister, had announced the AAP’s ₹1,000 per month stipend for women voters in the budget in March this year.

“A woman to head the Delhi government could make a difference to the women’s constituency that Kejriwal has been assiduously reaching out to,” author and political analyst Neerja Chowdhury said in her column in Indian Express on Monday.

Apart from the ₹1,000 per month stipend for women voters, Atishi will need to work on rolling out EV policy and the Water Bill Settlement Scheme, to name a few of the government schemes. And it is not going to be easy, as polls loom large with an aggressive BJP in opposition.

‘In the next few months, to trouble the people of Delhi, BJP will try its best to end the facilities given by Kejriwal ji. It will try to stop free electricity. It will try to ruin schools and hospitals. It will try to stop free medicines. It will try to stop the work of cleaning drains and sewers. It is Atishi ji’s responsibility to protect the people of Delhi from this terror of BJP. I have full faith that Atishi ji will fulfil these difficult responsibilities very well. My heartfelt best wishes are with Atishi ji,” former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia said in a post on X.

Atishi Vs L-G?

Replacing a chief minister months ahead of polls might as well be seen as a stopgap arrangement.

Given the past experience of Delhi’s power structure, the transition of power comes with a burden on the chief minister, more so due to the elected government’s at-odds relationship with the Lieutenant Governor, an appointee of the Union government.

By the move to quit, Kejriwal has perhaps removed the potential for the L-G or the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to advise the President to impose President’s Rule, triggered by a constitutional crisis.

Kejriwal, Sisodia for larger roles

By relinquishing the CM’s chair amid allegations of corruption, Kejriwal likely aims to garner sympathy and reclaim the moral high ground. He and other party leaders will now be free from governance responsibilities, and instead focus on organisation and election campaigning.

Kejriwal has also sidestepped any potential disputes arising from convening meetings, requesting files, or making decisions as mandated by the Supreme Court in the conditions for bail.

The Delhi Legislative Assembly’s current term is slated to conclude in February 2025. Kejriwal’s demand for early elections in November 2024, along with Maharashtra and Jharkhand, might not be accepted. And if it is, it could provide a strategic advantage for the AAP in capitalising on the broader anti-BJP sentiment in Delhi polls.

“CM or no CM, ultimately Kejriwal is the boss of AAP. His move to quit might not help the party, but it won’t hurt it either,” said Rahul Verma, political analyst and Fellow at the Centre for Policy Research (CPR).