Delhi gets its fourth woman CM: Who is Rekha Gupta?

A first-time MLA from Shalimar Bagh and an experienced municipal councillor, Gupta is set to become Delhi’s fourth woman CM after she was handed the top job following the BJP legislature party meeting. After the oath-taking ceremony on Thursday afternoon, she will become the only woman CM of a BJP-ruled state or Union Territory at present.

The 50-year-old Gupta was born in Nandgarh village in Haryana’s Jind district and was only two when her parents moved to Delhi. Her father used to work for the State Bank of India.

Gupta joined the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, the students’ organisation affiliated to the RSS, starting her political journey at Daulat Ram College in 1993. She served as the general general secretary of the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) from 1995 to 1996 and was its president from 1996 to 1997. She holds a degree in commerce and a Master’s degree in management and arts from the University of Delhi.

In 2002, Gupta joined the BJP and went on to become the secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha’s Delhi unit. She was subsequently promoted to the outfit’s national secretary, remaining in the position till 2005. Gupta has also served as the general secretary of the Delhi BJP’s Mahila Morcha, the national vice-chairperson of the BJP Mahila Morcha, the national in-charge of Uttar Pradesh Mahila Morcha, and has been a member of the BJP National Executive.

Wins and setbacks

Gupta made her foray into electoral politics in 2007, winning the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) elections from the North Pitampura ward and was elected chairperson of the women’s welfare and child development committee. She was re-elected from the same ward five years later and served as the vice-chairperson of the standing committee, the MCD’s top financial decision-making body. From 2012 to 2013, she also served as the chairperson of the New Delhi Municipal Council’s (NDMC) education secretary.

Gupta contested her first Assembly election in 2015 when she lost to the AAP’s Bandana Kumari by 10,978 votes. Five years later, she again lost to Kumari, but this time, she managed to reduce the margin to 3,440 votes. In 2022, Gupta again contested the MCD polls and won from the Shalimar Bagh ward. She was the BJP’s pick for the mayoral polls against the AAP’s Shelly Oberoi but lost.

The BJP leader, in the meantime, completed her Bachelor of Laws degree from a law college in Ghaziabad. In the Assembly elections this year, she was again given the opportunity against Bandana Kumari. This time, she was third-time lucky, winning the contest by 29,595 votes.

The CM-designate has two children. While her daughter is pursuing her post-graduation in Australia, her son is completing his engineering degree in Vellore, Tamil Nadu.

“She has been politically active for several years. She was associated with the ABVP and with the RSS. She has vast experience and is sensitive to people’s complaints,” said MCD Leader of the Opposition, Raja Iqbal Singh.

Saraswati Vihar councillor Shikha Bharadwaj said, “I have known her since the beginning of my political career. She is a good administrator, friendly, and bold. She knows the problems the people of Delhi face and also knows how to solve those issues.”