The meeting, which lasted about 30 minutes, was behind closed doors, and included Manish Sisodia, likely to be Kejriwal’s second-in-command as Delhi’s Deputy Chief Minister. Kejriwal is expected to have raised the issue of full statehood for the national capital, one point of his 70-point manifesto, as well as handing over the Delhi Police administration to the state government. Modi earlier sent a congratulatory message to Kejriwal and assured him of the central government’s co-operation in making Delhi a “world class city.” Kejriwal has already extended an invite to major union ministers to attend his swearing-in ceremony.
Kejriwal will be sworn in as the Chief Minister (CM) on February 14, exactly one year after he quit as Chief Minister last time around. In a landslide victory, the results of which were announced on February 10, AAP won 67 of the 70 assembly seats, quite a record considering they were battling against an in-power BJP. The Congress Party, which held power at the center for 10 years until 2014, was wiped out and had a tally of zero.
Kejriwal is back as CM after a 49-day period last year when he attempted to run a minority government. Kejriwal’s main plank was anti-corruption, which seems to have resonated with the public of Delhi. He was possibly aided by an almost entirely non-existent Congress, and a BJP hobbled by a lack of major personalities in its Delhi unit. The BJP’s attempt to rectify the situation by bringing in Kiran Bedi, former Director General of Police, New Delhi, doesn’t seem to have paid off. Bedi in fact, lost her own seat by over 2000 votes.
“Thanks for the unprecedented victory,” Kejriwal, a former tax official-turned politician, told hundreds of cheering supporters after the results were announced. “But it’s very scary, the kind of support the people of Delhi have extended and the mandate we have been given, I appeal to the AAP workers and leaders not to be arrogant,” Kejriwal said.
Kejriwal could bring technocrats on board his government to help his fledgling and largely inexperienced cabinet. “Yes, we need experts. We will encourage sector-wise expertise in this government,” he said.
