NEW DELHI: Rekha Gupta has been announced as next chief minister of Delhi, marking the BJP’s comeback in the national capital after 27 years.
Rekha, a first-time MLA, won the Shalimar Bagh constituency in the Delhi assembly elections, defeating AAP’s Bandana Kumari by 29,595 votes. This victory marked the end of AAP’s decade-long stronghold in the area.
She started her political journey in 1992 through the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) at Daulat Ram College, Delhi University. In 1996-97, she became President of the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU), where she worked on student issues.
In 2007, Gupta was elected as a councillor from North Pitampura, where she helped improve local facilities like libraries, parks, and swimming pools. She also launched the “Sumedha Yojana” to support economically weaker female students in higher education. As Chair of the Women Welfare and Child Development Committee, she led initiatives for women’s empowerment.
Gupta also served as General Secretary of BJP Mahila Morcha in Delhi and on its national executive committee.
Rekha, 50 years old, was born in 1974 in Nandgarh village, located in Jind district, Haryana. Her father held an officer position at the State Bank of India. In 1976, when Rekha was just two years old, her family moved to Delhi. She completed her primary to higher education in Delhi thereafter.
Of the 70 assembly constituencies, BJP won 48 seats, while AAP secured only 22. Key AAP leaders, including former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, and other prominent figures, lost their seats. Kejriwal, representing New Delhi for over 10 years, was defeated by BJP’s Parvesh Verma by 4,089 votes.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had praised the BJP’s historic victory, thanking the people of Delhi for their support and criticising AAP’s governance. He described the result as a clear mandate for development and trust over “ostentation, anarchy, and arrogance”.
While several AAP leaders, including Sisodia and Satyendra Jain, lost, Atishi managed to retain her seat in Kalkaji. Modi vowed to ensure good governance, pledging to make Delhi a better city for its residents.
AAP, which dominated in the 2015 and 2020 elections, suffered a significant blow, with BJP regaining control of Delhi after 27 years.