The BJP, which is yet to announce the chief ministerial face for Delhi, is likely to take the final call on the top post only after Prime Minister Narendra Modi returns from the United States.

The term of the current Delhi Assembly will conclude on February 26 and the new government must take charge by then.

Advertisement

The saffron party registered a landslide victory in the assembly elections, the results of which were declared on February 8, winning a two-thirds majority bagging 48 seats in the 70-member assembly.

According to the sources, the BJP’s legislature party comprising the 48 newly-elected MLAs is likely to meet on Sunday to finalise the name of the new chief minister after the Prime Minister returns from the US.

PM Modi is on a two-day visit to the US from Feb 12-13 after concluding his three-day visit to France.

BJP National President JP Nadda is regularly holding key meetings with newly-elected party MLAs.

According to the sources, the Chief Minister is likely to be chosen from among the elected BJP MLAs.

After the announcement of Delhi Assembly polls on February 8, many key meetings of top party leaders with newly-elected MLAs regarding the selection of the new Chief Minister and government formation have taken place.

Meanwhile, Union Minister Harsh Malhotra on Thursday asserted that the party will begin the work of Yamuna cleaning and finish the task within the given timeframe.

“We have to implement the Ayushman Bharat scheme in Delhi. We will begin working on the Yamuna and finish the task within the given timeframe. Our priority is to bring the garbage mounts to ground zero,” Malhotra told a news agency.

“The condition of Delhi has deteriorated a lot in the last 10 years. We will try to improve it with immediate effect,” he added.

Top party leaders, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah, JP Nadda, and state unit president Virendra Sachdeva, are regularly holding key meetings to discuss the selection of the next chief minister of Delhi.

Speculation is rife that Parvesh Verma, who earned the tag of ‘giant killer’ after defeating AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal from the New Delhi constituency, is also being seen as a strong contender for the top post.

There are also speculations about the possibility that the next chief minister could be a woman. According to the sources, a woman MLA could also be under consideration for the post. Among the BJP’s 48 MLAs are four women – Rekha Gupta, Neelam Pahalwan, Poonam Sharma, and Shikha Roy.

Amid suspense over the next chief minister, BJP MP Praveen Khandelwal emphasised on Wednesday that the BJP is a workers-based party and in the case of Delhi, the leadership would nominate a dedicated worker to take Delhi to the status of a world-class city.

“BJP is a workers-based party. Whenever such a situation arises the party’s national leadership takes the decision. In the case of Delhi, it is the same. BJP aims to make Delhi a world-class city. The national leadership of the party will nominate one dedicated BJP worker who will lead Delhi,” Khandelwal told a news agency.