Sep 17, 2024
By: Ayush Mehrotra
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Atishi Marlena, AAP MLA from Delhi’s Kalkaji constituency, is all set to become the third woman Chief Minister of Delhi, following Sheila Dikshit and Sushma Swaraj.
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Atishi grew up in Delhi and completed her high school at Pusa Road’s Springdales School. In 2001, she graduated with a degree in history from St. Stephen's College, Delhi. She went to Oxford University on a Chevening scholarship, where she earned her master’s degree in history in 2003.
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In 2005, she returned to Oxford, this time as a Rhodes Scholar at Magdalen College. Rhodes Scholarship is considered among the world's most prestigious international scholarship programs.
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After the Aam Aadmi Party formed the Delhi government in 2015, Atishi began working as an advisor to Manish Sisodia, who was the Education Minister at that time.
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As an advisor to the education minister, Atishi is widely known for her role in transforming Delhi's education landscape. From drafting fresh education policies to improving infrastructure for teachers and students, she made headlines for revolutionising education in Delhi.
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Atishi contested in the 2019 Lok Sabha election for AAP from the East Delhi constituency, facing former cricketer Gautam Gambhir. She lost by a large margin of 4.77 lakh votes.
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During the 2019 elections, Atishi dropped her second name ‘Marlena’, which she later clarified was not related to caste. As per media reports, Marlena comes from combining the surnames of Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin. Arvind Kejriwal called the move progressive.
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In March 2019, Atishi and other AAP leaders were taken to court by Delhi BJP's vice-president, Rajeev Babbar for defamation for her allegations on the removal of 30 lakh names from Delhi's voter list. Later in 2024, a BJP leader named Praveen Shankar Kapoor also sued Marlena and Kejriwal for saying the BJP was trying to steal AAP workers.
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Atishi was given another chance by the Aam Aadmi Party to contest the 2020 Delhi assembly elections. She contested from the Kalkaji constituency and won by more than 10,000 votes.
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When Manish Sisodia resigned from his post due to the alleged liquor scam in Delhi, Atishi was appointed to the cabinet. She took charge of multiple key portfolios, including education, PWD, and women & child welfare.
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After AAP's national convenor Arvind Kejriwal decided to resign as Delhi's Chief Minister following his release from jail on Friday, AAP MLAs unanimously agreed to Arvind Kejriwal’s decision to nominate Atishi for the top position.
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