Senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Atishi and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Praveen Shankar Kapoor traded barbs on Saturday after Atishi alleged in a post on X that the husband of Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta was holding meetings with government officials, claiming that “all the government work is being handled by her (CM) husband”.
Terming her remarks “shameful”, Kapoor stressed that Rekha Gupta was active in politics even before her marriage, describing her career as “independent politics”. He also questioned in what capacity the then CM Arvind Kejriwal’s wife had used the chief minister’s chair to deliver political speeches while Kejriwal was in jail.
Sharing two pictures of Manish Gupta in a meeting with a group of people, Atishi wrote in her post on X: “… the person who is taking the meeting of the officers of MCD, DJB, PWD and DUSIB is Manish Gupta, husband of Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta… this must be the first time in the history of the country that a woman has become the Chief Minister and all the government work is being handled by her husband. Does Rekha Gupta not know how to handle government work? Is this the reason why there are long power cuts in Delhi every day? Is Rekha unable to handle the power companies? Is this the reason why the fees of private schools are increasing? Is Rekha ji unable to handle the education department? It is extremely dangerous for a Chief Minister-husband to run a government!”
HT could not independently verify Atishi’s claims.
In response, Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva criticised Atishi for making “insulting remarks” against the chief minister. He said Gupta’s rise from Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) secretary to the chief minister’s post was a result of her hard work and commitment to public service.
“It is perfectly normal for Rekha ji’s husband to support her,” Sachdeva said. “In politics, addressing people’s daily issues is crucial, and it is natural for family members of public representatives to support party leaders in their work.”
Kapoor said Atishi should “have some shame”.
“Rekha Gupta, whom she is criticising, has been a political worker since the age of 19, before marriage. Yes, not only her husband but many of her brothers like us also support her in running the affairs. Your X post is an insult not only to students of Delhi but also to the people of Shalimar Bagh/Pitampura who elected her four times,”Kapoor said.
“Atishi ji, my sister did not enter politics by getting a ticket with the help of someone like you — Rekha ji has become popular due to her hard work,” Kapoor said in a post on X.
In the same post, Kapoor also asked: “How did Sunita Kejriwal come on the political stage and give a speech while sitting on the Chief Minister’s chair?” He appealed to AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal to rid the party of Atishi, calling her “not the right choice”.
No response was available from the chief minister’s office.
