After Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced he would be resigning, many names floated around the Ravi Shankar Shukla Lane bungalow that is Aam Aadmi Party’s new headquarters as his potential replacement. Would the new CM-designate be Gopal Rai, or Kejriwal’s wife Sunita Kejriwal, or would the post go to the frontrunner: 43-year-old Atishi Marlena Singh?
Singh, who has since been named CM-designate, will take the oath as Delhi Chief Minister on September 17, 4.30 pm. This makes her the third woman CM to lead Delhi—after Sushma Swaraj, who held the post for 52 days; and Sheila Dikshit, who was CM for over 15 years. She will also be the the 17th woman CM of any Indian state.
A part of AAP since 2012, Singh played a key role in the party’s Manifesto Drafting Committee for the 2013 Assembly election. According to party sources, Singh’s importance became evident earlier this year when Kejriwal, who was in prison, proposed her name to hoist the national flag in his stead during the Capital’s Independence Day celebrations. However, Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena intervened and gave the task to Kailash Gahlot.
A graduate of St Stephens college and Oxford University, Singh holds the maximum portfolios in the AAP government. The Kalkaji MLA assumed a critical role in AAP’s Cabinet when Kejriwal and former Deputy CM Manish Sisodia were arrested in a liquor policy scam case. While AAP’s top leaders languished in jail, Singh took charge of 14 ministries, including key departments such as finance, education, water, power and PWD.
Since taking oath as a Cabinet member last year, Singh has become one of AAP’s most visible leaders. Her indefinite hunger strike over Delhi’s water crisis in June made her a household name in the capital city. More so when she was hospitalised once her health deteriorated.
A Rhodes scholar herself, it is apropos for Singh to head the Education Ministry. Her work on education with AAP began in 2015 when she served as Manish Sisodia’s advisor from July 2015 to April 2018. On her advise, Sisodia introduced the 'Happiness Curriculum' and 'Entrepreneurship Mindset Curriculum' in Delhi’s government schools. These programmes focused on skill development and the students' emotional well-being.
Prior to joining AAP, Singh worked in a small village in Madhya Pradesh. She met several members of AAP through her involvement in setting up organic farming ecosystems and progressive education systems.
