BJP appoints central observers ahead of legislature party meet to pick new Delhi CM
New Delhi: The Parliamentary Board of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday announced two Central observers, hours ahead of the legislature party meeting in the national capital for electing a new Delhi Chief Minister.
Ravi Shankar Prasad, Lok Sabha MP and former Union Minister, and Om Prakash Dhankhar, BJP’s national secretary, will oversee the proceedings as the BJP MLAs elect the new Chief Minister at the legislature party meeting, this evening.
All eyes are on the party meeting, slated to take place at the party’s state unit at Pant Marg around 7 p.m. The 48 BJP legislators will pick the new Chief Minister of Delhi.
The leader after being chosen by the BJP legislators will head to Raj Niwas, where he will meet Governor V.K. Saxena and stake claim for the next government formation.
The new Chief Minister will take oath at a grand swearing-in ceremony at the city’s iconic Ramlila Maidan at noon on Thursday. The new CM will be administered the oath of office and secrecy by L-G Saxena, amidst the presence of top BJP brass on the dais.
A gathering of car drivers, auto drivers and slum-dwellers will be among the key invitees who will garner attention at the oath-taking ceremony.
The name of the new Chief Minister has remained a closely guarded secret till now, apparently because the process got delayed due to the Prime Minister’s foreign trips to France and the United States.
Earlier in the day, the BJP Parliamentary Board met under the chairmanship of PM Modi and decided on the names of Ravi Shankar Prasad and Om Prakash Dhankhar as the ‘observers’ for the legislature party meeting.
In the recently held Assembly elections, the BJP stormed to power by securing victory in 48 out of 70 constituencies while the AAP suffered a rout with 22 seats. The Congress failed to score for the third consecutive time.
The delay in the swearing-in of the Delhi CM also led to verbal exchanges between AAP and BJP. The AAP has said the BJP has “no face” to run the government and lacks a credible leader to govern the national capital. The BJP has trashed the charges.