Aam Aadmi (Common Man) Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday took oath as New Delhi chief minister for the third time at the Ramlila Maidan.
Kejriwal sworn into office by Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal in presence of a huge gathering. He took oath along with his designated cabinet — Manish Sisodia, Satyendar Jain, Gopal Rai, Kailash Gehlot, Imran Hussain and Rajendra Pal Gautam.
A supporter of the Aam Aadmi Party holds a sign that before Arvind Kejriwal's swearing-in ceremony as Delhi Chief Minister. AFP
The AAP got a massive mandate in the Delhi Assembly election as it was elected in 62 of the 70 Assembly constituencies here. The BJP could only manage to get eight seats. And the Congress again drew a blank.
When Kejriwal took oath in Delhi's Ramlila Maidan along with his six ministers on Sunday, sharing the stage with them were 50 common people, who were designated as "Delhi ke Nirmata" by the party.
The first of its kind initiative, Delhi ke Nirmata (Builders of Delhi) includes a list of safai karamcharis, students, teachers, doctors and bus marshals.
"Not my victory. It's the victory of every Delhi citizen. It has been our endeavour over the past five years to see how we can make a positive change in the lives of every Delhi resident," said Kejriwal after the swearing-in.
Kejriwal asserted he would work for the next five years in coordination with the Centre without discriminating against those who did not support his party during the recently-concluded Delhi Assembly polls.
Kejriwal said that it's time to put the bitterness of elections behind and look forward. "I'm everyone's chief minister — for AAP, BJP, Congress and all parties, I have never discriminated against anybody in my previous tenure," Kejriwal said.
The overflowing Ramleela grounds in Delhi also witnessed the swearing-in of Kejriwal's six-member cabinet, comprising Manish Sisodia, Satyendar Jain, Gopal Rai, Kailash Gehlot, Imran Hussain, and Rajendra Pal Goutam.
Except Gopal Rai, who took oath in the name of the nation's freedom fighters, all the others took it in 'God's' name. Kejriwal has not altered the composition of his cabinet that comprised the same members during the previous assembly's tenure.
Indo-Asian News Service