After his release from Tihar Jail in the Delhi excise policy case, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal caught friends and foes off guard on Saturday, and announced that he would resign “after two days”. If he follows through with this declaration, it would mark the second time Kejriwal resigns from the top post.
In February 2014, 49 days into his first tenure as head of the Delhi government, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader resigned, citing disagreements with the Congress – which was supporting his government from outside — over the Jan Lokpal Bill.
Kejriwal’s exit would also add him to the string of chief minister resignations this year, starting from Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s flip-flop to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in January.
Here’s a look at all the chief ministers who resigned mid-term in the last few years.
March 2020: Kamal Nath, Madhya Pradesh
Hours ahead of a Supreme Court-mandated floor test, Kamal Nath stepped down as the chief minister of Madhya Pradesh as the government fell short of numbers in the Assembly. “I have decided to step down from the post. However, I shall continue to work for the people here irrespective of my post,” he told reporters.
The Congress government was facing a collapse in the state after 22 rebel MLAs, including six ministers led by Jyotiraditya Scindia, resigned from their posts.
After his resignation, BJP leader Shivraj Singh Chouhan returned as the chief minister of the state.
March 2021: Trivendra Singh Rawat, Uttarakhand
In March 2021, nine days before completing four years as head of a BJP government in Uttarakhand, Trivendra Singh Rawat resigned as chief minister, saying the time had come to pass on the baton.
Asked about the reason for his resignation, Rawat said: “Yeh samuhik nirnay hota hai aur iska bahut acchha jawab aapko Delhi jaana padega uske liye (A collective decision is made. And for an appropriate answer, you will have to go to Delhi).”
The exit came after increasing dissatisfaction in the party’s state unit. In fact, some MLAs and factions had approached the party’s central leadership over Rawat’s style of functioning.
July 2021: Tirath Singh Rawat, Uttarakhand
Less than four months later, Tirath Singh Rawat, who had replaced Trivendra Singh Rawat as the Uttarakhand chief minister, also stepped down from his post.
After submitting his resignation, Tirath thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP president J P Nadda for trusting him with the post. “Considering the constitutional crisis… I found it appropriate to resign,” he said.
Tirath’s resignation came as time was running out for him to be reelected — he was a Lok Sabha MP at the time and had to win an Assembly bypoll to continue as the chief minister. Pushkar Singh Dhami succeeded Tirath.
July 2021: B S Yediyurappa, Karnataka
Veteran BJP leader B S Yediyurappa handed over his resignation to Governor Thawarchand Gehlot, after months of speculations in Karnataka’s political circles.
“There has been no coercion from anyone in Delhi. I voluntarily decided to resign on the occasion of the second anniversary of the government. No one has compelled me to resign — neither the PM, the (BJP) national president (J P Nadda) or (Home Minister) Amit Shah. I am leaving with the dream of bringing the BJP back to power again,” Yediyurappa said after stepping down.
Thanking Modi, Shah and Nadda, Yediyurappa said: “They have not given any position to anyone who has crossed 75 years of age but out of respect they allowed me to remain in office as CM for two years.” Basavaraj S Bommai replaced Yediyurappa as the Karnataka chief minister.
September 2021: Vijay Rupani, Gujarat
BJP leader Vijay Rupani put in his papers in September 2021, becoming the fourth chief minister to do so in the year.
Rupani resigned as the Gujarat chief minister, saying this is an “opportunity” for the party’s new leadership to take over. However, Congress said BJP has made Rupani a “scapegoat” to “hide its mismanagement during the Covid-19 pandemic” in Gujarat. A year after he stepped down, Rupani revealed to The Indian Express that the BJP’s “high command” had asked him to resign only the previous night.
Bhupendra Patel succeeded Rupani as the Gujarat chief minister.
June 2022: Uddhav Thackeray, Maharashtra
In June 2022, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray resigned, ending a nine-day political crisis sparked by the rebellion of Shiv Sena MLA Ekanth Shinde.
Thackeray resigned minutes after the Supreme Court ruled that he must prove his government still has a majority in a floor test. Lashing out at the rebel MLAs, Thackeray said those who had been bestowed with important positions by the party had betrayed the Sena.
Shinde formed a new government in Maharashtra with the support of the BJP.
August 2022, January 2024: Nitish Kumar, Bihar
In August 2022, Nitish Kumar resigned as chief minister and removed his party Janata Dal (United) from the NDA. He announced that his party rejoined the Mahagathbandhan, and it would form a governing coalition with the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Congress.
In January this year, Nitish Kumar found himself in the middle of another political storm, after he snapped ties with his coalition partners RJD and the Congress, resigning from the top post, only to form the government again with the BJP’s support.
The move prompted a congratulatory call from Prime Minister Narendra Modi on one hand and disapproval from the Opposition INDIA bloc on the other.
February 2024: Hemant Soren, Jharkhand
Hours before Jharkhand Chief Minister and head of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) Hemant Soren was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate over an alleged land scan, he submitted his resignation as the head of government in the state.
The development marked the end of days of drama between Soren and the investigative agency – from the ED searching his Delhi residence to his party lashing out over his image being “maligned”.
Champai Soren then assumed charge as Jharkhand chief minister for a brief while.
March 2024: Manohar Lal Khattar, Haryana
Manohar Lal Khattar resigned as Haryana chief minister in March ahead of a Cabinet reshuffle, with the BJP’s ties with alliance partner Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) headed for a split ahead of Lok Sabha polls.
Khattar was replaced by the BJP’s Kurukshetra MP and state unit chief Nayab Singh Saini.
July 2024: Champai Soren, Jharkhand
Champai Soren stepped down from the post in July, paving the way for his predecessor and JMM executive president Hemant Soren’s return as the chief minister.
Champai met Governor C P Radhakrishnan and tendered his resignation after which Hemant submitted his request to form the government. This was after the ruling coalition’s 45 MLAs elected Hemant as their leader and, according to insiders, convinced Champai to step down to ensure a smooth transfer of power.
September 2024: Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi
Arvind Kejriwal is set to resign as Delhi chief minister on September 17. He has said he will hold a meeting of party MLAs to decide on the new chief minister. Delhi ministers Atishi and Kailash Gahlot were among the names doing the rounds on Sunday, but party leaders said no decision has been taken yet.
