(Image source from: x.com/BJP4Delhi)
On Thursday afternoon, Rekha Gupta from the Bharatiya Janata Party took the oath of office as the Chief Minister of Delhi during a notable ceremony held at Ramlila Maidan in the city. With this achievement, Ms. Gupta becomes the BJP’s fourth individual to assume this role in Delhi and its second female leader, marking her as the fourth woman overall to hold the title, succeeding Sushma Swaraj from the BJP, Sheila Dikshit from Congress, and Atishi from the AAP, who was her immediate predecessor. The cabinet also welcomed six of her party members, including Parvesh Verma, known as the 'giant-killer' for his victory over AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal in the New Delhi constituency and who was regarded as a strong contender for the Chief Minister position. Mr. Verma was sworn in shortly after Ms. Gupta, who took her oath in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and BJP President JP Nadda, alongside chief ministers from states governed by the party and its allies, including Andhra Pradesh’s N. Chandrababu Naidu.
The ceremony also saw the attendance of high-ranking union cabinet officials such as Rajnath Singh and Hardeep Singh Puri, along with other representatives from the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance. Additional members, including Kapil Sharma, Manjinder Sirsa, Ashish Sood, Pankaj Kumar Singh, and Ravinder Indraj Singh, were sworn into the new cabinet, which has the capacity to include three more ministers. Furthermore, the BJP has selected Vijender Gupta, the former Leader of the Opposition, to become the new Speaker of the Delhi Assembly. Mr. Gupta makes a return to the Assembly ten years after he was forcibly removed by marshals during a dispute with AAP representatives when they were in power.
प्रधानमंत्री श्री @narendramodi आज दिल्ली के रामलीला मैदान में आयोजित दिल्ली की नव निर्वाचित मुख्यमंत्री श्रीमती @gupta_rekha और उनके मंत्रिमंडल के शपथ ग्रहण समारोह में सम्मिलित हुए।#दिल्ली_में_भाजपा_सरकार pic.twitter.com/Y8QX0E1fTI
— BJP Delhi (@BJP4Delhi) February 20, 2025
Ms. Gupta, who is a first-time MLA from Shalimar Bagh—winning the seat from AAP's Bandana Kumari, who had held it since 2013—was an unexpected choice for the Chief Minister position. The announcement of her appointment was made late Wednesday following meetings of the BJP’s Parliamentary Board, led by Prime Minister Modi, and with the party’s new MLAs. These meetings experienced a delay of nearly two weeks after the election results as the party mulled over decisions and awaited Mr. Modi's return from visits to France and the United States. Upon her nomination as Chief Minister, Ms. Gupta expressed her commitment to "elevating Delhi to new heights," pledging to work "with utmost honesty, integrity, and dedication" for the empowerment and development of every resident of Delhi. She also expressed gratitude toward the Prime Minister and the senior leadership of the BJP for their trust in her.
