As lobbying and deliberations to pick the Delhi chief minister gain momentum, the BJP has decided to turn the swearing-in of its new government here into a grand National Democratic Alliance event, party leaders said.

Although the event will mark the BJP’s solo ascent to power in the national capital, that too after a long 27 years, the party will invite its allies to the ceremony, expected later this week, to underline its commitment to coalition politics.

The Narendra Modi government at the Centre banks on the support of its allies, with the BJP failing to secure a majority in last year’s general election, and therefore has reason to try and keep its partners happy.

In Delhi, the BJP had allotted one seat each to Bihar allies Janata Dal United and Lok Janshakti Party, but they lost.

The swearing-in is likely to be held after Prime Minister Modi returns from his February 12-13 visit to the US, party insiders said. But before that, the BJP will have to pick the chief minister from among a large number of aspirants.

Parvesh Sahib Singh, the giant slayer who scalped Arvind Kejriwal on his turf of New Delhi Assembly constituency, is considered the frontrunner but the central leadership could spring a surprise, given its past record.

Being the son of former Delhi chief minister Sahib Singh Verma makes Parvesh a “dynast”, and this could go against him given Modi’s relentless attacks on the Opposition for its alleged “nepotism”, party sources indicated.

“Modi will have the final say. He can surprise all by picking an unlikely chief minister, as he did in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh,” a BJP source said.

As in Delhi, the Prime Minister had led the 2023 poll campaigns in Rajasthan,
Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh on the “Modi Ki Guarantee” slogan.

After the party swept all three states, it brushed aside the claims of veterans to appoint unlikely candidates as chief minister: first-time MLA Bhajan Lal Sharma in Rajasthan, Mohan Yadav in Madhya Pradesh, and Vishnu Deo Sai in Chhattisgarh.

After addressing a victory rally at the BJP headquarters here on Saturday, Modi had met senior party leaders to discuss the choice of chief minister, sources said. Separately, Union home minister Amit Shah met Parvesh.

On Sunday, party chief J.P. Nadda and Shah discussed government formation, sources said. Some of the newly elected MLAs, including Parvesh, made “courtesy” calls on lieutenant governor V.K. Saxena, a Modi confidant whose suggestions might play a decisive role in the selection of the chief minister.

Apart from Parvesh, all the seven MPs of the BJP in Delhi are said to be strong contenders for the top post.

They include Bhojpuri actor-singer and politician Manoj Tiwari, who has been nursing chief ministerial ambitions for a long time. He has been positioning himself as the leader of the capital’s large “Purvanchali” community — settlers and migrants from Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh, party insiders said. Purvanchali support had been crucial to the BJP’s election victory.

In the run-up to the elections, there was intense speculation about former Union minister Smriti Irani being projected as the prospective chief minister. Eventually, the leadership decided not to promote a shadow chief minister but to bank on Modi’s popularity.

Many in the BJP feel that the leadership might pick a woman to lead the party’s government in the national capital to underline the importance it attaches to women’s role in politics.

If that happens, two-time councillor Shikha Roy, who defeated prominent AAP leader Saurabh Bhardwaj from Greater Kailash, would be a contender. So would be Bansuri Swaraj, first-time MP from the New Delhi Lok Sabha seat and daughter of late Union minister Sushma Swaraj.

Sheila Dikshit of the Congress had ruled Delhi for three terms before the AAP, and she is widely regarded as the best chief minister the capital has ever had.

In the backroom meetings, Parvesh sought to position himself as the frontrunner, sources said. He visited his native village of Mundka in Delhi and, assuming the tone of a chief minister-in-waiting, told reporters that “developing the Yamuna riverfront will be a key priority of the new government”.

His daughters too were fielded before the media. They declared that their father had the “blessings of the father figures, PM Modi and Shah”.