Atishi Shoots Up to No 2 Position in Delhi Cabinet as Kejriwal Hands Her Top Portfolios in Reshuffle

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal reshuffled his cabinet for the third time in four months, giving the significant portfolios of Finance, Planning and Revenue to Atishi, who, along with Saurabh Bhardwaj, was inducted into the cabinet following the resignations of Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain in March this year. With the addition of these portfolios, Atishi, inducted just four months ago, has shot up to the number 2 position in the cabinet.

Atishi, who worked closely with Sisodia in education reforms, is the only woman in the Delhi cabinet of seven ministers, including the chief minister. She was given the charge of six ministries — Women and Child Development, Education, Tourism, Art, Language and Culture, PWD and Power. Earlier in June, she was given the charge of Public Relations and now has additional charges of Finance and Revenue. The total number of ministries and departments under her have shot up to 10 from six.

Incidentally, Delhi Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot is the biggest loser in this reshuffle, for he been in charge of all the three ministries. In fact, it was Gahlot who had presented the Delhi budget in the absence of Sisodia. Gahlot still holds Home, Law, Justice and Legislative Affairs, Transport, Administrative Reforms, and Information Technology.

Saurabh Bhardwaj is in charge of Vigilance, Services, Health, Industries, Urban Development, Irrigation and Flood Control and Water. Unlike Atishi, there are no additions to his portfolios though he holds the all-important portfolios of Services, which was earlier held by Sisodia, and Vigilance, which was earlier with Jain.

AAP’s Kalkaji MLA Atishi is clearly the biggest gainer in the reshuffle. She is also the only cabinet minister to have travelled with Kejriwal when he embarked on a mission to solicit support of opposition parties against the Centre’s May 19 ordinance on control of administrative services in the national capital. Others in the entourage included Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, and MPs Sanjay Singh and Raghav Chadha. Atishi was also seen sharing space with the Delhi CM when he inaugurated three schools in the capital and charging stations for EVMs.

Meanwhile, Gopal Rai is the Delhi minister whose portfolios have shrunk steadily. He is now in charge of General Administration Department, Environment, Forest and Wildlife.

Imran Hussain, the Muslim face of the Kejriwal cabinet, has just two portfolios — Food & Supply and Election.

The Dalit face in the cabinet, Raj Kumar Anand, who was inducted after the resignation of Rajendra Pal Gautam in October last year, holds Gurudwara elections, SC&ST, Social Welfare, Cooperative, Land & Building, Labour, and Employment. He is MLA from Patel Nagar.