BJP had three Delhi CMs before but none completed 5-year term

This will be the fourth time that Delhi will have a chief Minister from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The BJP, which has yet to announce its chief minister candidate in Delhi, won the Delhi Election 2025 after the vote count ended on Saturday.

The BJP won 48 of the total 70 seats in the Delhi Assembly, up from eight seats it won in the 2020 Delhi Assembly Election. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) won 22 seats, significantly dropping its seat share from 62 it won in 2020. Meanwhile, the Congress’ seat share remained constant at zero.

Delhi CM from BJP for 4th time

The BJP can announce its chief minister’s candidate for Delhi at any time. The party returned to power in Delhi after more than 26 years.

The BJP first took the reins in the national capital in 1993 after it won the Delhi polls with 49 seats in the assembly. Since then, the BJP has had three chief ministers.

In 2025, it will be the fourth time that the Delhi Chief Minister will be from the BJP.

The previous three Chief Ministers from the BJP in Delhi are Madan Lal Khurana, Sahib Singh Verma, and Sushma Swaraj. None of them completed full five-year term in power.

Madan Lal Khurana: From 1993 to 1996

The elections in 1993 were held after the anti-Sikh violence of 1984, which was one of the reasons that dented the Congress’ performance in 1993.

Khurana was the first chief minister to serve Delhi after the state Legislative Assembly was reinstated through the 69th Constitution Amendment Act, 1991, Indian Express reported. His tenure lasted a total of two years, 86 days, from December 2, 1993 to February 26, 1996.

Famously known as ‘Delhi ka Sher’ (Lion of Delhi), Khurana’s Khurana ended after his term was involved in the infamous Hawala scandal in 1994. Follwing this, political pressure mounted on him that led him to resign from the CM post in 1996.

Sahib Singh Verma: From 1996 to 1998

Khurana’s resignation paved the way for Sahib Singh Verma to become the second BJP CM.

BJP’s Sahib Singh Verma is the father of BJP leader Parvesh Verma who defeated AAP’s national convenor Arvind Kejriwal in the New Delhi assembly constituency in the 2025 Delhi Elections. Sahib Singh’s tenure lasted for 2 years and 228 days — between February 26, 1996 and October 12, 1998.

Sahib had to resign after he faced backlash over extremely high onion prices at the time and his alleged failure to deal with the water crises in Delhi.

Sushma Swaraj: From October 1998 to December 1998

Then came Sushma Swaraj, Delhi’s first woman chief minister. According to the Indian Express, the BJP introduced a new face, hoping that it would help the party fight anti-incumbency in the Union Territory.

During her 52-day tenure, Swaraj set up a committee to restore the supply of onions to help bring down the prices. She reportedly arranged vans for distributing onions across Delhi. But this could help the BJP return to power.

The BJP lost power to Congress in the 1998 Delhi Elections when Sheila Dikshit became the chief minister for the next 15 years. The Congress ruled for 15 years before the AAP formed the government in 2013.

By winning the 2025 Delhi Elections, the BJP is now returning to power after more than 26 years, ending the AAP’s 10-year rule. The BJP won 48 seats, the AAP 22 seats and the Congress none.