Arvind Kejriwal on Monday took charge as the Chief Minister of the capital, at the Delhi Secretariat, a day after he was sworn-in at a public ceremony at the Ramlila Maidan.
The swearing-in ceremony of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday was a completely different affair as no Opposition leaders were invited.
Six other AAP leaders also took oath as ministers in the newly elected government. Interestingly, these six leaders were also in the second term of the AAP government.
For the oath-taking ceremony, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was also invited but he was not able to attend as was visiting his Lok Sabha constituency, Varanasi for the inauguration of various projects.
Meanwhile, displaying political propriety, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal exchanged good-natured remarks on Sunday.
While the PM Modi congratulated the Chief Minister for taking oath, the AAP leader said they must work together to make the national capital a ‘pride city’.
“I congratulate Arvind Kejriwal on taking oath as Delhi’s CM earlier today. Best wishes to him for a fruitful tenure,” Modi said. Responding to the PM’s tweet, Kejriwal said he wished Modi could have attended the oath ceremony.
“Thank you for the warm wishes sir. I wish you could come today, but I understand you were busy. We must now work together towards making Delhi a city of pride for all Indians,” Kejriwal replied.
In his address after the swearing-in ceremony, Kejriwal had said: “I want to work with the central government to make Delhi a world-class city. I had also invited the PM for the oath ceremony, but I guess he could not make it because he is busy. I want the PM to bless us so that we can work for the development and progress of Delhi.”
Given the unique status of Delhi, the Centre plays a big role. During the previous term, Kejriwal had accused the Centre of creating hurdles in his work. However, this time he hopes for a fruitful term.
The Aam Aadmi Party stormed to power after it grabbed 62 of the 70 seats, leaving just 8 for the BJP. The Congress was once again sent packing for a duck.
Meanwhile, it is speculated that the AAP is planning to expand its presence beyond Delhi. The aim is to form cadres of AAP across the country.
While Bihar is going to polls later this year, West Bengal will have elections next year. Punjab, where AAP is the main opposition, will see elections in 2022.
With this in mind, the Aam Aadmi Party will be launching a nationwide “missed call” campaign.
To be running between February 23- March 23, the campaign was planned in a meeting between the national executive and the state office-bearers of the AAP from across the country.
AAP had launched a missed call number — 9871010101 — by which people can join the campaign.