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'Like Bharat...': Atishi takes charge as CM, keeps Kejriwal's seat vacant
Atishi who took charge as the chief minister of Delhi on Monday said her emotions are same as Bharat when Lord Ram went into exile for 14 years.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Atishi who took charge as the eighth chief minister of Delhi on Monday sat in a different chair, leaving the seat used by her party chief Arvind Kejriwal unoccupied.
“I have taken charge as the chief minister of Delhi today and accepted this responsibility. My feelings today are the same as Bharat's when Lord Ram went into exile for 14 years and Bharat had to manage the governance of Ayodhya,” said Atishi.
The newly appointed chief minister said that just as Bharat placed Lord Ram's ‘khadaun’ (sandals) on the throne, she would lead the Delhi government for the next four months.
"Arvind Kejriwal has set an example of dignity in politics by stepping down. The BJP left no stone unturned to tarnish his image. Fake cases were filed against Arvind Kejriwal and he was lodged in jail for six months,” claimed Atishi.
She has retained the 13 portfolios she held in the Kejriwal government, which include education, revenue, finance, power, and public works department (PWD).
“I hope people will bring back Kejriwal in February polls, his chair will remain in the CM office till then,” she said.
Meanwhile, another minister Saurabh Bharadwaj has eight departments under him, the highest after Atishi, including those of health, tourism, art and culture.
Read: ‘Itna sannata kyon hai bhai?': AAP MP Sanjay Singh takes jibe at BJP after Arvind Kejriwal's RSS queries
New member Mukesh Ahlawat has been given the portfolios of labour, SC and ST, employment, and land and building departments. Gopal Rai continues to oversee development, general administration, and environment and forest—portfolios he held in the Kejriwal government. Kailash Gahlot has also kept his previous roles in transport, home, administrative reforms, and women and child development.
The new cabinet headed by Atishi has a long list of pending projects, schemes and new initiatives to be launched in the next few months before Delhi goes to polls in February next year.
Atishi on Saturday took oath as the chief minister of Delhi, replacing Arvind Kejriwal who resigned on Tuesday.
The tenure of the Atishi government will be brief as the assembly polls in Delhi are due in February next year. Atishi, 43, was chosen as the leader of legislature party on Tuesday ahead of Kejriwal handing over his resignation to lieutenant governor Vinai Kumar Saxena.
Kejriwal on Sunday announced his decision to resign, days after he was granted bail by the Supreme Court in a corruption case filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the Delhi excise policy case.
With PTI inputs
