AAP Raises Questions Over Missing Dr BR Ambedkar Photos in Delhi CM Rekha Gupta’s Office

The AAP alleges that Portraits of Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh were removed from the Chief Minister's office and residence, suggesting an ideological shift. The dispute centres on symbolics in official spaces and broader political narratives in Delhi's governance.

Delhi politics saw a fresh clash on 6 December 2025, as the Aam Aadmi Party again alleged that Chief Minister Rekha Gupta removed portraits of Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh from key government spaces. The charge centred on visuals from an event marking Dr. Ambedkar Mahaparinirvan Diwas in the national capital.

AAP legislator Saurabh Bharadwaj, who served as a minister in the earlier Delhi government, claimed that these portraits disappeared from both the current Chief Minister’s office and official residence. Bharadwaj argued that recent photographs from these locations no longer show Dr. Ambedkar or Bhagat Singh, and that this change reflects the priorities of the present administration.

Delhi Aam Aadmi Party questions visual symbols in CM offices

During a media interaction, Bharadwaj displayed older images from Arvind Kejriwal and Atishi’s tenure. In those pictures, Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh appear prominently behind the leaders. Bharadwaj contrasted them with fresh photographs of Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, where a portrait of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visible in the background instead.

Delhi Aam Aadmi Party links photo removal to ideology debate

Bharadwaj stated that every official photo and video from the Kejriwal period showed “Baba Saheb” in the frame, and that Arvind Kejriwal’s home still displays portraits of Dr. Ambedkar and Bhagat Singh. Bharadwaj alleged that images from Rekha Gupta’s office and residence now lack such portraits, claiming this indicates the Bharatiya Janata Party does not respect Dr. Ambedkar.

AAP leaders also recalled an earlier dispute in February 2025, when Rekha Gupta allegedly removed photos of “Baba Saheb” Ambedkar and Shaheed Bhagat Singh from the Chief Minister’s office. Party MLAs protested inside the Assembly and accused the Bharatiya Janata Party government of holding views against the Constitution, saying, "This is not just about a picture, but an attempt to suppress an entire ideology." The BJP government had described those allegations as baseless.

Linking the latest visuals to that earlier controversy, Bharadwaj questioned why Rekha Gupta appears unwilling to display Dr. Ambedkar’s portrait in official spaces. AAP is framing the issue as part of a wider ideological contest in Delhi, while BJP’s earlier dismissal of the charges highlights a continuing political stand-off over symbols and constitutional icons.