THE JHARKHAND STORY NETWORK
Patna, Nov. 20: Nitish Kumar was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Bihar for a record 10th time on Thursday morning at Patna’s historic Gandhi Maidan, marking a major victory after last week’s Assembly election.
The Janata Dal (United) chief, often dismissed by critics as too old or unfit for power, proved them wrong as his party won 85 out of 243 seats, powering the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) to a massive total of 202 seats.
Show of Strength at Gandhi Maidan
The swearing-in ceremony turned into a strong display of the NDA’s political dominance, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP Chief Ministers, and leaders from allied states in attendance.
Soon after the event, PM Modi posted on X:
“My best wishes to all those who have taken oath as ministers in the Bihar government. This is a wonderful team, with dedicated leaders who will take Bihar to new heights…”
Nitish Kumar’s Political Longevity
Nitish Kumar, known for his ability to reshape alliances, is already the eighth-longest-serving chief minister in India. If he completes this new term, he will surpass former Sikkim CM Pawan Chamling’s 24-year record, becoming the longest-serving Chief Minister in Indian history.
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19 MLAs Sworn In, BJP Takes Majority of Cabinet Seats
A total of 19 MLAs took oath, starting with senior BJP leaders Samrat Choudhary, Vijay Sinha, and Dilip Jaiswal. They are expected to form the core of the new government, with an emphasis on experienced leaders.
Choudhary and Sinha served as Deputy Chief Ministers earlier and may return to those roles.
Jaiswal was briefly the Revenue Minister.
Other BJP leaders sworn in include:
Sanjay Kumar Singh, Pramod Kumar, Lakhendra Raushan, Rama Nishad, Narayan Prasad, Surendra Mehata, Arun Shankar Prasad, Sanjay ‘Tiger’ Singh, and Shreyasi Singh — the 34-year-old competitive shooter and Commonwealth Games gold medallist, who retained her Jamui seat.
Senior leader Ram Kripal Yadav, formerly with the RJD and JDU and once a Union Minister, also joined the cabinet, as did ex-Roadways Minister Nitin Nabin.
BJP Gets 14 Berths, JDU Gets 6
With 14 cabinet positions, the BJP retains its “big brother” role after winning 89 seats. The JDU will have six ministers this time.
Key JDU leaders inducted include:
Bijendra Prasad Yadav – former Energy Minister
Shrawon Kumar – former Rural Development Minister
Vijay Kumar Chaudhary – former Water Resources Minister
Ashok Choudhary – former Rural Works Development Minister
Mohd Zama Khan – former Minorities Welfare Minister
Leshi Singh, Madan Sahni, and Sunil Kumar were also included; all have ministerial experience.
Smaller Allies Get One Berth Each
Three smaller NDA allies —
Lok Janshakti Party (Chirag Paswan)
Hindustan Awam Morcha (Jitan Ram Manjhi)
Rashtriya Lok Manch (Upendra Kushwaha) —
received one berth each.
From the RLM and HAM, the sons of the party chiefs — Deepak Prakash and Santosh Manjhi — were sworn in. Both are members of the Legislative Council; Prakash becomes a first-time minister, while Manjhi earlier served briefly as Minister for Information Technology and Disaster Management.