New CM’s name will be out in couple of days, says Delhi BJP chief; 3 AAP councillors jump ship

The suspense over the name of the new Delhi Chief Minister is likely to continue for a few more days, hinted Delhi BJP President Virender Sachdeva on Saturday, saying “we will be sharing the good news in a day or two”.

His remarks came on a day when three AAP councillors joined the BJP ahead of the MCD mayoral poll in April, raising chances of the BJP upstaging the AAP and wresting power in the civic body. The last election was won by the AAP by a margin of three votes.

Sachdeva said the announcement of the new Chief Minster's name will be preceded by the appointment of at least two central party observers to chair a meeting of the BJP Legislature Party and elect a Leader of the House.

The Delhi BJP president disagreed with suggestions that there was an inordinate delay in government formation. “Usually, such an exercise takes 7-8 days and I don’t think that the matter has been delayed,” he said on the sidelines of a media briefing.

Sachdeva’s refusal to reveal the name of the new Chief Minister coincided with speculation in Delhi BJP about February 19 being finalised as the date for the new government’s oath-taking at an event at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.

“The event will be a form of show of strength by the NDA with a strong message for upcoming Assembly elections in Bihar,” said a party leader.

The results of the Delhi Assembly election were declared on February 8. In the 70-member House, the BJP won 48 seats and the AAP bagged 22 seats.

Meanwhile, the contours of the new Delhi BJP government’s 7-member Cabinet, including the Chief Minster, have become a topic of intense discussion within party circles.

Women representation and a balance between experience and youth are the buzz words along with the talk of giving representation to various communities like Jat, Vaishya, Dalit, Punjabi and Purvanchali.

Earlier in the day, three AAP councillors joined the BJP in the presence of the Delhi unit chief who also hinted at a possible shake-up in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.

“Earlier, the slogan was double-engine sarkar. Nowadays, the demand is for triple-engine sarkar,” said Sachdeva, hinting at the chances the BJP ousting the AAP in the civic body in which the AAP had 112 and the BJP had 110 members before a dozen councillors – from both the parties - got elected to the Delhi Assembly.

“A triple-engine sarkar – at the Centre, Assembly and MCD – will be ideal for making Delhi beautiful and serving people,” said Sachdeva.

Welcoming AAP councillors - Anita Basoya (Andrews Ganj), Nikhil Chaprana (Hari Nagar) and Dharamvir (R K Puram) – Sachdeva said these leaders lent their support to BJP’s victory in Assembly elections.