Atishi to become first woman minister in Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi Cabinet

NEW DELHI: Atishi, a senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader who will soon become the first woman minister in the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi Cabinet, has played a significant role in the group in charge of carrying out the party's educational reforms in the capital.
Following the resignation of Kejriwal's trusted lieutenants Manish Sisodia and Satyender Jain from their positions in the Cabinet due to their arrests on corruption-related charges, the names of Atishi and AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj have been put forward for appointment as ministers.
Bharadwaj (43) is the party's national spokesperson and the vice-chairman of the Delhi Jal Board at the moment. The two leaders frequently take the lead during the party's various protests as well as interactions with the media.
Speaking to PTI, Bharadwaj said, "The Centre wanted to stop the work done in Delhi and we will not let that happen. We are thankful to the CM for having faith in me and Atishi, and we will continue to work for the people of Delhi."
Atishi (41), who represents the Kalkaji constituency in the assembly, had contested the 2019 Lok Sabha polls from the East Delhi seat but she lost to the BJP's Gautam Gambhir.
Bharadwaj, who is a three-time MLA from the Greater Kailash assembly constituency, has also served as a transport minister in the Delhi cabinet during the first stint of the AAP government.
A computer science engineer, Bharadwaj is also a law graduate from the Osmania University. He has worked abroad for a brief period of time before the joining the Aam Aadmi Party in 2013.
While Sisodia, who was handling 18 of the total 33 departments in the Delhi government, was arrested on Sunday evening by the CBI in the Delhi excise policy case, Jain, currently lodged in Tihar jail, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in May last year in connection with a money laundering case.
Jain continued to be a minister in the Delhi government even after his arrest.
(With inputs from PTI)