First-time MLA Rekha Gupta named Delhi’s new Chief Minister

Dubai: The BJP has named Rekha Gupta, a first-time MLA from Shalimar Bagh, to lead the Delhi Government.

The decision was taken at a meeting of the party’s legislature party on Wednesday evening.

Rekha succeeds Aam Aadmi Party’s Atishi after the BJP ended the 10-year-rule of Arvind Kejriwal’s party in the recently concluded assembly election.

The formal announcement came from the X handle of the Delhi BJP.

“Hearty congratulations and best wishes to Mrs. Rekha Gupta ji on being elected the leader of the Delhi BJP Legislative Party. We have full faith that the state will progress under your leadership,” read a rough translation of their Hindi post.

Rekha, a former president of the Delhi University Students’ Union, is the fourth woman Chief Minister of Delhi.

BJP’s Sushma Swaraj, Congress’ Sheila Dikshit, and Aam Aadmi Party’s Atishi have been other women chief ministers of Delhi.

The 50-year-old, who is a first-time MLA from Shalimar Bagh, defeated AAP candidate Bandna Kumari by over 29,000 votes in the February 5 Assembly polls. Rekha will take oath at a grand swearing-in ceremony at the city’s iconic Ramlila Maidan at noon on Thursday.

“I express my heartfelt gratitude to all the top leadership for trusting me and entrusting me with the responsibility of the post of Chief Minister. This trust and support of yours has given me new energy and inspiration. I pledge that I will work with full honesty, integrity and dedication for the welfare, empowerment and overall development of every citizen of Delhi. I am fully committed to this important opportunity to take Delhi to new heights,” Rekha posted in Hindi on X, shortly after the BJP made the big announcement.

The BJP won 48 seats in the polls, returning to power in the national capital after 27 years.

Rekha 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 l 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

Rekhaalso served as General Secretary of BJP Mahila Morcha in Delhi and on its national executive committee.

Rekha was born in 1974 in Nandgarh village, 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.