With Rekha Gupta becoming the fourth woman chief minister of Delhi, questions now arise about who will be the new leader of the opposition from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). 

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On Thursday (Feb 20), BJP leader Rekha Gupta was sworn in as the chief minister of Delhi in a grand ceremony at the Ramlila Maidan, becoming the fourth woman to lead the Delhi Assembly.

Also read | Meet Rekha Gupta, next chief minister of Delhi, set to take oath on Feb 20

In the ceremony, Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena administered the oath of office to Rekha Gupta and her council of ministers. Six other MLAs—Parvesh Sahib Singh, Ashish Sood, Manjinder Singh Sirsa, Ravinder Indraj Singh, Kapil Mishra, and Pankaj Kumar Singh—also took oaths as ministers alongside Gupta.

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While Rekha Gupta has been sworn in as the new chief minister, will Aam Aadmi Party’s Atishi become the leader of the opposition to form a women-ruled Assembly?

Also read | '5 goals in 100 days' - Here's what Delhi CM Rekha Gupta vows to achieve in her tenure

Will Atishi be the leader of opposition?

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AAP will form the opposition in the Delhi Assembly following its first defeat in the elections to BJP.

Former chief minister Atishi is one of the contenders to lead the opposition in the Delhi Assembly. She represents the Kalkaji constituency, which she won for the second consecutive time.

Also read | PM Modi expresses confidence in Delhi CM Rekha Gupta's leadership: 'She has risen from the grassroots'

Atishi became Delhi CM on September 21, 2024, after the resignation of her predecessor, Arvind Kejriwal.

She previously served as Minister of Education, PWD, Culture, and Tourism before she was appointed chief minister. From July 2015 until April 17, 2018, she was an adviser to then Deputy Chief Minister, Manish Sisodia, focusing mainly on education.

Also read | Rekha Gupta to be next Delhi CM, Arvind Kejriwal says ‘I hope she…’

If Atishi becomes the leader of the opposition with Rekha Gupta as chief minister, the two will form a women-led Delhi Assembly for the first time. Interestingly, both are alumni of the University of Delhi.

Other possible contenders for the post of leader of opposition include Gopal Rai, who represents the Babarpur constituency; Jarnail Singh, who represents the Tilaknagar constituency; and Sanjeev Jha, who represents the Burari constituency.

(With inputs from agencies)