Nitish Kumar Resigns as Bihar CM, Set to Be Sworn In Again on November 20

Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has submitted his resignation to Governor Arif Mohammad Khan, paving the way for the formation of a new government. On 20 November, he will be sworn in as the state’s Chief Minister for the tenth time at Gandhi Maidan in Patna. Speculation is rife that his new cabinet will also take the oath on the same day, with key national figures like Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and other senior NDA leaders expected to attend.

In the recent assembly elections, 29 NDA ministers contested, and 28 retained their seats. The only exception was Sumit Kumar Singh of JD(U), who lost from the Chakai constituency; he had won earlier as an independent. While a major reshuffle in the JD(U) ministerial lineup seems unlikely, the BJP could see significant changes. Several veteran and influential leaders are also expected to return to Nitish’s cabinet.

From the JD(U) quota, about ten leaders are widely tipped for ministerial positions. These include Vijay Chaudhary, Bijendra Yadav, Shravan Kumar, Ashok Chaudhary, Lacey Singh, Jama Khan, Madan Sahni, Jayant Raj, Maheshwar Hazari, and Santosh Nirala. While the previous cabinet had 13 JD(U) ministers, this time the party could secure up to 14 portfolios.

Maheshwar Hazari—who has served as the Information and Public Relations Minister in previous Nitish-led governments—secured a decisive victory from his stronghold Kalyanpur, defeating his CPI (ML) Liberation rival Ranjeet Kumar Ram by 38,000 votes, marking his fourth consecutive win.

Meanwhile, Vijay Kumar Chaudhary, a close confidant of Nitish Kumar, won from the Sarayarajan seat in Samastipur district with a comfortable margin of 20,739 votes, cementing his place in the next cabinet.