No Ministry for Chief Minister Kejriwal in Delhi Cabinet. Here's Why

New Delhi:

Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi's Chief Minister, will not be in charge of any ministry in the capital's new government. Instead, he will "oversee the work of the ministers and connect with the people", according to Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia.

Mr Sisodia himself will look after multiple ministries, including Urban Development, Education, Finance, Planning, Revenue and Vigilance.

During the AAP's last term, the Chief Minister was in charge of the crucial ministries of finance, home and power. But this time, Mr Kejriwal wanted to be relieved from departmental work so he could focus on connecting with the people and revamping the system, sources in the AAP told NDTV.

That's why the post of a Deputy Chief Minister was created for Mr Sisodia, who has been assigned the task of handling all the departmental work of the new administration, they said. The creation of the post - Delhi has never had a Deputy Chief Minister earlier - was the brainchild of Mr Kejriwal, said sources.

"I don't think CM shud micromanage any one ministry (sic)," tweeted the Chief Minister today evening.
 

Some people surprised and asking me why i didn't keep any portfolio wid myself? I don't think CM shud micromanage any one ministry(1/3)

; Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) February 14, 2015

Mr Kejriwal added that he will devote himself towards finding solutions to Delhi's problems and will also regularly monitor the work of all ministers and legislators.

I will devote myself 2 finding systemic solns to Delhi's problems n implementing them. This includes tech as well as governance solns(2/3)

; Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) February 14, 2015

Also I will regularly monitor the work of all ministers n MLAs n hold them accountable(3/3)

; Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) February 14, 2015

The new Cabinet has attracted considerable criticism for its lack of woman legislators; to counter it, the AAP points out that a team of young lawmakers, including women, will work with the Chief Minister's Office on various issues, directly under the supervision of Mr Kejriwal.

The AAP government has also dropped the idea of holding its 'janata durbar', the meet-the-public programmes that often ended up in chaos during its last stint. Instead, the Chief Minister plans to use a variety of avenues - new phone lines, the Internet and social media - to reach out to the people and also hold one-on-one interactions with the citizens of Delhi.