Disappointed? Neither Delhi CM Nor Deputy CM, 'Giant Slayer' Parvesh Verma Has To Be Content With PWD And Water

Last Updated:February 21, 2025, 07:00 IST

A BJP leader told News18 that Verma may be upset initially, but the party discipline is such that the team will work smoothly

BJP MLA and Delhi minister Parvesh Verma. (File pic/PTI)

The lack of celebrations at his house on Thursday morning and disappointment on his face were evident as Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma missed the golden chance of becoming the Delhi chief minister despite being the “giant slayer" of this month’s assembly elections.

Verma is also not the deputy CM and has to be content with some plum portfolios like the public works department and water, which are key areas for the new government as good roads and clean water are important poll promises of the party.

Sources in the BJP said Verma lost out to Rekha Gupta because of his political dynasty and lineage, as his father Sahib Singh Verma was once the chief minister of Delhi.

Both the BJP and RSS were more comfortable with a leader who had no such family political lineage and had risen through the ranks, they said. The preference was also for a woman leader, and so Verma lost out.

For many years now, the New Delhi seat MLA has gone on to become the chief minister—from Sheila Dikshit to Arvind Kejriwal. Many, hence, saw Verma as a front-runner after his shock victory over Kejriwal.

Verma first became an MLA in 2013 before being elected an MP in 2014 and 2019 from West Delhi. However, he was denied a ticket in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections from Delhi. A Jat leader with considerable influence, Verma though did not have much experience in municipal politics or the BJP’s state unit.

A leader who has risen from the grassroots, was active in campus politics and the state organisation, worked as a councillor in municipal administration, and now is a first-time MLA—this is how Prime Minister Narendra Modi described Rekha Gupta, the new Delhi CM. The BJP wanted to go for a woman face. Aside from Gupta, there is no woman chief minister of the BJP currently in the country, though there are two women deputy CMs of the party in Rajasthan and Odisha. Delhi has a history of women CMs in Sushma Swaraj, Sheila Dikshit, and Atishi.

The PM has often spoken about “Nari Shakti" (woman power) and taken pride in his government passing the women’s reservation bill. Delhi is also a state where women have overwhelmingly voted for the BJP this time, which promised a scheme to give Rs 2,500 per month to women. Hence, Rekha Gupta ticked the box on this count when it came to the CM choice. She is also from the influential Bania (trader) community, which has always backed the BJP in Delhi.

Another reason that seems to have played a significant role in Rekha Gupta’s choice as CM is her strong grounding in the RSS. Her bio mentions that she has been associated with the Sangh for 32 long years, and the imprint of the RSS on her selection is apparent. Rekha Gupta was part of the Sangh’s students’ wing, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), and became the Delhi University Students Union president in the late 1990s. This was not a point on Parvesh Verma’s CV.

A BJP leader told News18 that Verma may be upset initially, but the party discipline is such that the team will work smoothly. Verma has been given key portfolios and hence will oversee improving the condition of roads in the capital and the drinking water situation. “He has been given a big opportunity to perform," a BJP leader explained. For the record, Verma told journalists that he was not upset.

News politics Disappointed? Neither Delhi CM Nor Deputy CM, 'Giant Slayer' Parvesh Verma Has To Be Content With PWD And Water