Atishi is expected to handle key departments such as Education, Labour, and Tourism, and Saurabh Bharadwaj is likely to be assigned the PWD, and power and home departments, as per sources.
Staff Reporter
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) likely to induct MLAs Saurabh Bharadwaj and Atishi as the two new faces in the Delhi cabinet. This comes a day after Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain resigned from their ministerial positions.
According to sources, their names will be sent to Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena, as per rules, who will then forward them to the President for her assent. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has called a meeting with all MLAs and councillors today.
After Manish Sisodia’s arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the Delhi liquor scam and Satyendar Jain’s arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in May last year for his alleged involvement in a money laundering case, at least 20 portfolios were left vacant.
While Sisodia was Delhi’s Deputy Chief Minister and held several high-stakes portfolios, including education, Jain was Delhi’s health and prisons minister. Some of Sisodia’s portfolios, including finance and education, will be given to Kailash Gahlot and Raaj Kumar Anand.
After their resignations, the AAP’s biggest challenge could be the possibility of its key leaders being sentenced by courts, especially if the jail term is two years or more.
The BJP staged a protest in Delhi seeking the resignation of Kejriwal. It also undertook a “public awareness programme” revolving around charges related to the alleged excise policy scam, at the city’s prominent traffic intersections.