NEW DELHI: The suspense over the new Delhi Chief Minister is set to end soon. Party sources said the BJP legislature party meeting will take place around 3:30 pm on Wednesday following which the name of the CM will be announced. The new Delhi CM and the council of ministers will then take oath at the iconic Ramlila Maidan on Thursday.
The Ramlila Maidan is being spruced up with its boundary walls receiving a fresh coat of paint, and tents for the grand oath taking ceremony being installed. Earlier, the oath ceremony was scheduled for 4 pm on Thursday but it has been rescheduled to 11 am.
In the assembly poll results announced on February 8, the BJP secured 48 seats in the 70-member Assembly, returning to power in the city after 26 years. The AAP won only 22 seats. With the saffron party going into the polls without announcing a chief ministerial candidate, speculation has intensified over who could be the chief minister.
The names of some newly-elected MLAs are doing the rounds including Parvesh Verma, who defeated AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal; former Delhi BJP presidents Vijender Gupta and Satish Upadhyay; and other leaders such as Pawan Sharma, Ashish Sood, Rekha Gupta and Shikha Rai. The names of Ravinder Indraj Singh, the MLA from Bawana (SC) seat, and Kailash Gangwal, who won the Madipur (SC) seat for the BJP for the first time, are also being discussed.
Many within the party believe that the BJP leadership could choose a "dark horse" as Delhi's next chief minister, a strategy the party opted for in Rajasthan, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Chhattisgarh.
According to party insiders, the names — for the CM and council of ministers — were likely to include “a mix of experience and youth”, with representation from each of the dominant caste and community groupings in the capital.
“Today there was an important organisational meeting that took place at the Delhi BJP state headquarters. In this meeting, there was a detailed discussion about the upcoming activities, programs and campaigns of the organization,” said Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva.
After inspecting the ground along with Sachdeva, BJP National General Secretary Tarun Chugh said Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena is overseeing the preparations and people from across the city have expressed desire to be at the event, likely on Thursday. Talking to reporters, Chugh said the people of Delhi have blessed Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is "trusted by all citizens from Kashmir to Kanyakumari".
“On Monday, we ensured the arrival of items for setting up the stage and sitting arrangements. On Tuesday, items were arranged to give a final shape to the place where the gathering of thousands of people will take place. There will be three stages at the ground and entry may take place from all 10 gates of the ground so people do not face any hassle,” said a BJP leader.
A colourful musical programme will be held on the stage of Ramlila Maidan before the swearing-in ceremony, in which Kailash Kher will also perform. Chief Ministers and Deputy Chief Ministers of 20 states will attend the mega event. Diplomats of major countries have also been invited. More than 50 film stars and industrialists will be present. Besides, farmers of Delhi and beneficiaries of central government schemes including laadli sisters will also be invited to the ceremony.
