Delhi CM Rekha Gupta credits husband for her success, has one regret since taking office

Behind every successful man is a woman, goes the adage. But the reverse can also be true, says Delhi’s new Chief Minister Rekha Gupta.

In an interview with PTI on Wednesday evening, Gupta credited her husband for being a key force in shaping her career and success.

Her only regret? She has had to cut down on family time since she became the chief minister on February 20, after the BJP ousted the Aam Admi Party from power in assembly elections, ending the Arvind Kejriwal-led party’s 10-year rule.

In the interview conducted at the Delhi Secretariat, Gupta, the only woman chief minister in BJP-ruled states, said she is indebted to her “big joint family” for giving her "full support" in her political career, which started when she became secretary of Delhi University Students’ Union in 1995 and its president in 1996 as an ABVP leader.

The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) is the students' arm of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and a potent force in many universities.

For long a municipal corporator, Gupta is a first-time MLA from Shalimar Bagh constituency. She has also been the national Vice President of the BJP Mahila Morcha and previously served as the general secretary of the BJP’s Delhi wing.

Talking about the changes in her life after becoming chief minister, Gupta said that earlier she used to talk to her daughter and son, both of whom study outside Delhi, every day. But now she manages to speak to them only once every 3–4 days. "So, it is their time that has to be cut down," she said.

"Earlier, I often used to talk to my husband for an hour, but now I have to think even before talking to him for ten minutes, fearing it might be disrupted by some incoming phone call. Now, I am not able to do things like cooking for the family and fulfilling their demands that any housewife normally likes and does," she said.

On being asked whether her husband is behind her success, Gupa said, "Of course, yes. He did a lot for me."

"So, their (family) support and companionship is a big plus that makes you move ahead," she added.

When told that very little is known about her family, and people are keen to know, judging by the high number of Google searches on the subject, the 50-year-old chief minister opened up by saying she lives in a "very big joint family," which includes her businessman husband, his four brothers and mother-in-law.

On her side, she has her mother, three sisters, and one brother. Her father passed away during Covid. Gupta is the fourth woman to hold the chief minister's post after Sushma Swaraj of BJP, Sheila Dikshit of Congress Party and Atishi of AAP.

Born in Haryana's Julana, she is a B.Com graduate from Delhi University's Daulat Ram College. She later earned a law degree from Chaudhary Charan Singh University, Meerut, and also practised as an advocate.