Atishi’s challenge: Party and govt

Atishi Marlena’s selection as the Chief Minister of Delhi to succeed Arvind Kejriwal, who has resigned, was no surprise. Though there are leaders senior to her in the Aam Aadmi Party and the government, she had emerged as the face of the party and the government when Kejriwal and some other leaders were in jail in the Delhi liquor scam. S

he had done well as an adviser to the government before she became a minister and had an important role in improving the schools in the national capital. As a minister, she handled a large number of ministries and gained some experience in administration.

Governance in Delhi is not easy as the Lieutenant-Governor has special powers and the government does not have control over the bureaucracy. The Delhi government has had to deal with a hostile central government. Atishi sat on a hunger strike demanding more water for Delhi during summer. 

The new government will have to give a big push to governance, which has conspicuously suffered. Atishi proved she was a capable minister when she stepped into the shoes of Manish Sisodia after his arrest.

She now has a greater challenge when a bigger responsibility has been thrust on her. She will expect and need better political support now from the party, including from its senior leadership. But it should also be noted that she was selected for the position and not elected by the party, as has perhaps become the norm across political parties. No party encourages
open contests for leadership positions within the organisation or for government. 

Atishi is expected to keep the seat warm for Kejriwal, who wants to come back after proving his innocence in the “people’s court” in the elections, which he wants to be advanced to November.

The government will have to give strong support to the party’s political and electoral push. The AAP and the Delhi government have lost some sheen and have to wash away some stains caused by the liquor scandal.

They have also faced criticism for their handling of this year’s rain-related floods. There have been other governance issues too. The AAP did not win a single seat in the capital in the Lok Sabha election.

So it is a tough challenge that Atishi has to face in the next few months. The government has to carry out a lot of repairs, do some hardwork and create new perceptions and narratives when there is not much time and room to do so.