After Atishi's rise to Delhi CM post, what next for Kejriwal?

With Delhi getting today a new chief minister, Atishi, who was a minister in the outgoing government, it's a new landmark in the political journey of AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal.

Kejriwal had announced his resignation two days after he walked out of Tihar Jail on Sept 13, spending over five months in prison in the excise policy case. Stringent bail conditions, which prevented him from attending office or signing any files, necessitated the succession to Atishi. Otherwise, Delhi might have gone under President's rule due to a dysfunctional government of Kejriwal who could not officially perform his duties.

Also Read: Atishi's journey to the top: From an activist, advisor and AAP’s force to the new CM of Delhi


Kejriwal's decision to reign and select Atishi over other senior party leaders seems to be a shrewd move aimed at shoring up his dwindled political capital as well as wait out till assembly elections in Delhi which are due early next year. It's also possible that Kejriwal is trying to carve for himself a national role.

Kejriwal's attempt to dust up image

Kejriwal's resignation is aimed at securing his political future by dusting up his image which had taken a beating due to his involvement in the Delhi excise policy case. He will sit out and wait for Delhi elections rather than continue as a dysfunctional chief minister and face the ire of public and crumble beneath a strong anti-incumbency sentiment against him.

The last time Kejriwal resigned as CM, he returned to office with a landslide win. But today he carries a decade-long incumbency in addition to corruption charges. It may not be easy for Kejriwal to evade responsibility by finding a replacement CM in Atishi, especially when his resignation card came too late.

Also Read: A timeline of Delhi CM's arrests, bail pleas in Delhi excise policy case

Reacting to Kejriwal’s announcement of resignation, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva claimed that the people had already delivered their verdict on the Delhi CM’s arrest when AAP lost all seven seats in the national capital during the Lok Sabha election. “Despite Kejriwal asking for votes saying he would not have to go to jail if people voted for AAP candidates in Lok Sabha polls and starting the 'Jail ka Jawab Vote Se' campaign, all their candidates lost,” he said.

Resignation and then promoting Atishi to the CM post is the best Kejriwal could do in the given circumstances. Besides giving him a chance to claim moral high ground, the move gives him space to perform politically ahead of elections in Haryana, J&K, Maharashtra and Jharkhand as well as distance himself from the Delhi government which has faced sharp criticism due to misgovernance.

What is Kejriwal's future now?

Many think Atishi is a placeholder as a CM while Kejriwal would be waiting out to return as CM if the AAP wins the next elections again. This theory is also fuelled by Kejriwal's call for early elections. Kejriwal's call for elections in November 2024 aligns with the electoral calendar of other states, such as Maharashtra and Jharkhand, which could provide a strategic advantage for AAP if they can capitalise on a broader anti-establishment sentiment.

Also Read: How a Rs 1,100 crore liquorgate, Tihar stays & wish to win trust made once 'Aam Aadmi' Atishi Delhi's CM

However, choosing a CM for just a few months has often led to a power tussle and big exits later, as was witnessed in Jharkhand recently between JMM's Hemant Soren and Champai Soren, and in Bihar in 2014 after JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar reclaimed the top seat from Jitan Ram Manjhi. Early elections will minimise this potential problem.

If the AAP wins the next Delhi elections, Kejriwal is most likely to return as the Cm since he has branded his resignation as his agni pariksha, a test from voters in the next elections. If his party wins, he will claim people have declared him innocent even though the cases against him will go on. The AAP victory might also help him win a further reprieve from the court in form of less restrictive bail conditions.

However, given the severity of corruption charges against him and the possibility of his conviction too, Kejriwal might not return as the Cm of Delhi but take up a national role. Before, in the Lok Sabha polls, the AAP had become a part of INDIA bloc of opposition parties and Kejriwal might look at a more proactive role at national level, trying to expand his party's electoral footprint in other states by stitching up alliances and spending more time on campaigning and mobilising party workers.

If the AAP loses next Delhi elections, Kejriwal can escape responsibility as Atishi could take the onus for the defeat. In this scenario too, Kejriwal stands to gain because despite the loss of Delhi, Kejriwal can style himself as a national leader of the party who has risen above from chief-ministership.

Also Read: A look at top five controversies Atishi was embroiled in

Yet, the corruption cases will always be an albatross around his neck. Due to corruption charges, it will not be easy for him to invent himself as a national leader of stature who could pose credible threat to the BJP in states where the AAP thinks it has some presence on ground. But after all additions and subtractions, his resignation as the Delhi CM is the best move for him in the given circumstances. His political future in the short term depends on whether he is really able to convince people that he is falsely implicated by the BJP in corruption cases as he claims.