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Senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and former Delhi chief minister Atishi was on Friday appointed as the incharge of the party's Goa unit, replacing Pankaj Gupta who is currently unwell. Atishi, a key strategist of the party and a prominent face of its national leadership, is expected to oversee organisational affairs and strengthen AAP's presence in the coastal state ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections. Due to unavailability of Pankaj Gupta owing to illness, Atishi ji is being appointed as prabhari of Goa. We extend best wishes to her for her new responsibilities," a formal announcement letter from party's National General Secretary (Organisation) Sandeep Pathak read. AAP made its electoral debut in Goa during the 2017 Assembly polls and secured two seats in the 2022 elections -- Velim and Benaulim. The party, which has been attempting to build its base beyond Delhi and Punjab, sees Goa as a crucial state in its national expansion plans. Atishi is also the Leader of Opposition
A Delhi court on Thursday dismissed a criminal defamation complaint filed by Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit against former chief minister Atishi and AAP MP Sanjay Singh, underscoring their "legitimate exercise of fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression". Additional chief judicial magistrate Paras Dalal refused to take cognisance of Dikshit's complaint and said the averments and contentions labelled defamatory by Dikshit were "not imputation" but "political aspirations and assertions". The order said the statements of the AAP politicians urged the public to make a "wise decision of their precious vote" and couldn't be termed as imputations "worthy of scrutiny" under defamation laws. "This court fails to find that the necessary ingredients of criminal defamation are prima facie not made out. The press conference and averments made by the respondents is nothing more than political discourse amongst rival and competing parties," it said. The statements were observed to h
Senior AAP leader and former Delhi Chief Minister Atishi on Monday accused the BJP government in the city of failing to manage power supply, alleging outages have increased since the party took office last month. There was no immediate response from the BJP over the allegations. Addressing a press conference here, Atishi said, "Before the AAP government came to power, long power cuts were normal in the national capital. Every household used to have inverters. But after Arvind Kejriwal became the chief minister of Delhi in February 2015, power cuts became a history." She cited data presented by the BJP-led central government in Rajya Sabha to say that Delhi received round-the-clock power supply under the AAP government. "The people of Delhi do not need data because they know that for the past 10 years, their inverters were unused, and they didn't have to change batteries. But now, after the BJP formed the government in the city, power cuts are on the rise," she said. "How is it tha
Former Delhi Chief Minister Atishi was chosen as the Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly at a meeting of AAP MLAs here on Sunday, party leaders said. AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal and the party's 22 MLAs -- that includes Kalkaji legislator Atishi -- attended the meeting. The first session of the Delhi Assembly will begin on February 24. In the three-day session, the ruling BJP government has said that pending CAG reports against the performance of the previous AAP government will be tabled in the House. The BJP ousted AAP from power in Delhi, winning 48 of the 70 seats in the assembly polls held on February 5. AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal and several top leaders of the party, including Manish Sisodia, also lost the elections.
Outgoing Delhi Chief Minister Atishi on Friday said "internal conflicts" are happening among BJP MLAs over portfolio allocation and accused the party of making excuses to avoid fulfilling its poll promises. Addressing a press conference, Atishi claimed that BJP leaders were engaged in a "tussle" over ministerial posts to "exploit" public funds. She further alleged that the BJP had no intention of delivering the commitments the party made in its election manifesto. "We have learned from our sources that the BJP is planning to blame the AAP for its failure to fulfil promises. They will claim that the Delhi government has no money due to the previous AAP administration," Atishi said. Highlighting the AAP government's financial track record, she stated that Delhi's budget had increased from Rs 31,000 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 77,000 crore in 2024-25 during its tenure. "In the last 10 years, Delhi's budget has grown 2.5 folds. The Arvind Kejriwal-led government even repaid the debt inheri
Outgoing Delhi chief minister Atishi on Thursday said within three days of AAP loosing its hold in the national capital, the city has been facing power cuts. The senior AAP leader said BJP wants to turn Delhi into Uttar Pradesh, a city known known for hours long power outages. No immediate reaction was immediately available from the BJP. Addressing a press conference, Atishi claimed that within three days of AAP ousted of power in Delhi, more than 40 outages were reported from different areas of the city and people have now started buying inverters. "Under the AAP government, the power sector was continuously monitored which has now collapsed within three days with BJP coming to power," she charged. The BJP does not know how to rule and it would create a situation of long power outage in Delhi like Uttar Pradesh, she alleged. The BJP defeated AAP in the February 5 polls, returning to power in Delhi after 26 years winning 48 of the 70 Assembly seats. The party is yet to form a ..