Arvind Kejriwal resigns as Delhi Chief Minister after a decade of holding the post

Arvind Kejriwal has resigned from the Delhi Chief Minister position. He has held the CM's position for the last 10 years. AAP leader, Atishi Marlena, will succeed Kejriwal as the new Delhi CM.

Kejriwal formally submitted his resignation this evening to Lt Governor Vineet Saxena.

He had proposed Atishi's name for the top post, India Today reported, citing sources. The other candidate being considered for the top post was Kailash Gahlot, one of the senior AAP leaders. There will be no deputy Chief Minister this time.

Sources have indicated that there will not be a Deputy Chief Minister. Atishi, the representative for the Kalkaji constituency, is set to take her oath during a special Assembly session scheduled for September 26-27.

Who is Atishi Marlena?

Atishi, born on June 8, 1981, hails from an academic family in Delhi, with her parents, Vijay Singh and Tripta Wahi, both professors at Delhi University.

Atishi, as she is popularly known, was given the middle name ‘Marlena,’ a blend of the names Marx and Lenin, a reflection of her ideological roots. In 2018, seeking to shift the focus from her family background to her work, she adopted the name Atishi in her public persona.

Her educational journey began in Delhi, where she completed her high school education at Springdales School, Pusa Road. Atishi pursued her undergraduate degree in History from the prestigious St. Stephen's College in 2001.

She advanced her education at Oxford University, earning a master’s degree in History in 2003 on a Chevening scholarship, followed by her time at Magdalen College as a Rhodes scholar in 2005.

Political involvement

Atishi’s political career began in January 2013 when she joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). She played an influential role in policy formulation, particularly drawing from her experiences during the Anti-Corruption Movement in India. Her activism gained prominence during the Jal Satyagraha in Khandwa district, Madhya Pradesh, in 2015, where she supported AAP leader Alok Agarwal during the protests and the subsequent legal challenges.

In the lead-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Atishi was appointed the party's in-charge for East Delhi. She contested the elections but faced a significant defeat, coming in third against BJP's Gautam Gambhir, with a loss margin of 4.77 lakh votes.