The BJP is likely to name the next Chief Minister of Delhi anytime after Prime Minister Narendra Modi returns from his five-day visit to France and the United States.

After its historic win in the Delhi Assembly elections, the saffron party continued to brainstorm over the selection of the next chief minister for the sixth consecutive day. According to sources, the BJP’s legislature party, comprising 48 newly-elected MLAs, is likely to meet on February 16 to finalise the name of the new chief minister after the prime minister returns from the US.

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The sources said the swearing-in ceremony of the new chief minister is likely to be held either on February 19 or February 20.

The BJP 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.

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

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

BJP National President JP Nadda is regularly holding key meetings with party MLAs. According to the sources, the chief minister is likely to be chosen from among the elected BJP MLAs.

Senior party leaders, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and state unit president Virendra Sachdeva, are also holding regular 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.