Among the big names in the party who were not given a seat in the assembly was the outgoing health and urban development minister, Saurabh Bharadwaj, who lost the Greater Kailash seat that he had held since 2013. He was not just an important minister but also a forceful party spokesperson.
Other prominent losers were former AAP health minister Satyendar Jain, who is out on bail, and deputy speaker Rakhi Birla.
From the previous cabinet, however, four of the six members managed to win their seats. Apart from Atishi and Rai, the other two winners were food and civil supplies minister Imran Hussain from Ballimaran and labour minister Mukesh Kumar Ahlawat from Sultanpur Majra. Among the losers was minister without portfolio Raghuvender Shokeen from Nangloi Jat.
Kejriwal and Sisodia were seen as the two pillars of AAP when it was formed from the India Against Corruption movement in 2012. The two leaders took on Congress’ three time CM Sheila Diskhit.
The party rose quickly and became a one man show with Kejriwal, supported by Sisodia, seen to be setting the agenda and the governance roadmap from the party’s first stint of 49 days. It formed a minority government with outside support from the Congress in 2013.
Even when the party was alleged of liquor scam, Kejriwal and Sisodia remained together and joined hands in the poll campaign for the Delhi elections after they got bail.The exit of some of AAP’s senior leader, including those who had served as ministers, only shook the ship and did not overturn it.
Kejriwal was seen to be helming the narrative as the CM even when he was in jail. However, a few days after he got bail in September last year, he resigned and decided to hand the baton to Atishi.
Despite the strong messaging that Atishi was in command of the government, it was Kejriwal who navigating the ship. He had said that would take on the role of CM only if AAP won the Delhi polls as a “certificate of honesty” from the people.
AAP has now lost and Kejriwal is not an MLA. The party faces a new challenge of nurturing a strong second line of leadership lead the opposition charge and take on the BJP in the assembly.
The coming days will show whether Kejriwal manages to keep his party members together even after being out of power. While both Atishi and Rai are trusted aides, which of the two will be chosen for the tough task of leader of opposition is something that will be carefully considered.
Atishi had played a key role in assisting Sisodia prepare the roadmap for strengthening the school infrastructure when he was education minister. She later stepped in as a trusted minister before taking on the role of CM.
Rai, besides being a minister, has been managing the organisation as the Delhi convener. Whoever is assigned the role of leader of opposition will face the challenge of keeping the MLAs together as AAP is now vulnerable to MLAs being poached and fissures emerging within the party over leadership issues.
Satyendar Jain, who lost from Shakur Basti, was one of the first ministers to be arrested in 2022. Jain was instrumental in flagship schemes like mohalla clinics. Like other party stalwarts, Jain had retained his seat since 2013.
Somnath Bharti is another prominent AAP figure who faced defeat, losing from Malviya Nagar to former Delhi BJP president Satish Upadhyay.
AAP’s MCD in-charge Durgesh Pathak who contested from Rajendra Nagar assembly seat also lost by a narrow margin of 1,231 votes to BJP’s Umang Bajaj. He is also currently the member of the party’s political affairs committee (PAC) and was elected an MLA in the byelections in 2022.
