In a surprising turn of events, the BJP has chosen Rekha Gupta, a first-time legislator and former three-time municipal councillor, as the new Chief Minister of Delhi. Rekha, elected from Shalimar Bagh, defeated three-time AAP legislator Vandana Kumari by over 29,000 votes in the recent assembly polls. This marks the BJP’s return to power in Delhi after 27 years, following its resounding victory in 48 of the 70 assembly seats, while AAP managed only 22. The announcement was finalized on Wednesday evening, ending speculation about Delhi’s leadership.

Born in Haryana’s Julana in 1974, Rekha pursued her education at Delhi’s Daulat Ram College and Chaudhary Charan Singh University in Meerut. A member of the Banik (Bania) community, she began her political journey in the 1990s as a leader in the RSS-affiliated student organization ABVP. Rekha held leadership positions in Delhi University’s student council and later served as the national general secretary of BJP’s youth wing. She has been a prominent RSS member and currently serves as a national vice-president of BJP’s Mahila Morcha.

This move echoes a similar strategy by Narendra Modi and Amit Shah in Rajasthan, where they had previously chosen an inexperienced Bhajan Lal Sharma as Chief Minister. Today, Rekha will take her oath of office alongside her cabinet at the historic Ramlila Maidan in the presence of Prime Minister Modi. This makes Rekha Gupta the fourth woman Chief Minister of Delhi, succeeding leaders like Sushma Swaraj, Sheila Dikshit, and Atishi Marlena.