Rekha Gupta of India's ruling BJP sworn in as chief minister of Delhi

Gupta’s ascent to power hands control of the capital city to Prime Minister Modi’s party for the first time in 27 years.

A member of India’s ruling Hindu-nationalist party has been sworn in as chief minister of Delhi, handing the party control of the capital for the first time in decades after landslide elections.

Rekha Gupta, 50, of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was sworn in as the top official of the Indian capital on Thursday, becoming the fourth woman to hold the post of the sprawling megacity of more than 30 million people.

“I will faithfully and impartially discharge the duties of the office,” Gupta said while taking the oath of office in front of a crowd of cheering supporters.

Gupta, who has a law degree and began her career in student politics in the city, was selected for the post by party members late on Wednesday.

This month, the BJP won most of the seats in the high-stakes Delhi polls for the first time in 27 years. After taking 48 seats in the 70-member local assembly, the party ousted Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his Aam Aadmi Party, which won 22 seats.

The BJP is in government nationally but has not controlled the local legislature in Delhi since 1998, so its sweeping victory was both symbolic and strategically important.

Kejriwal had governed Delhi for much of the past decade and was a prominent critic of Modi.

Kejriwal rode to power as an anticorruption crusader but spent several months behind bars last year over accusations his party took kickbacks in exchange for liquor licences. He has denied wrongdoing and characterised the charges as a political witch-hunt by Modi’s government.

The BJP’s victory in Delhi is a boost for 74-year-old Modi, who won a third term in office last year but lost his parliamentary majority, forcing him to rely on coalition partners to govern.

Gupta faces major challenges, including poverty and pollution.

A former BJP general secretary, she started out as a student leader at Delhi University in 1992. She is known for initiatives on the welfare of women and children as well as support for impoverished female students.

In a post on X after her selection as chief minister, Gupta promised “to work with full honesty, integrity, and dedication for the welfare, empowerment, and overall development of every citizen of Delhi”.

Before the February 5 elections, her party had offered to revamp government schools and provide free health services, free electricity and a monthly stipend of more than 2,500 rupees ($29) to poor women in Delhi.

Delhi’s air pollution, which smothers the city in hazardous fumes for months during the winter, also poses a major challenge.

New Delhi is regularly ranked as the world’s most polluted city with smog often surging as much as 60 times the World Health Organization’s recommended daily maximum.

None of the key parties made tackling the crisis a focal point of their campaigns.