PATNA [ Bihar] : In a historic moment on Sunday, Nitish Kumar assumed office as the Chief Minister of Bihar for an unprecedented ninth term. The swearing-in ceremony, held at the Raj Bhavan in Patna, witnessed the induction of a new cabinet, comprising leaders from Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal United (JDU) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Among those taking the oath were prominent leaders:
- JDU's Bijendra Prasad Yadav as a cabinet minister.
- JDU's Vijay Kumar Chaudhary as a cabinet minister.
- JD(U)'s Shrawan Kumar sworn in as a cabinet minister.
- BJP leader Vijay Sinha taking oath as a cabinet minister.
- BJP's Samrat Choudhary assuming office as a cabinet minister.
- BJP's Dr. Prem Kumar taking the oath as a cabinet minister.
- Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular)'s Santosh Kumar Suman being sworn in as a minister.
- Independent Sumit Kumar Singh taking oath as a minister.
Speculation surrounded the appointments of Samrat Chaudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha as Deputy Chief Ministers.
The oath ceremony was attended by significant political figures, including BJP chief JP Nadda and Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan.
Nitish Kumar's resignation from the Chief Minister's post earlier on the same day marked a pivotal moment. Following his resignation, the Governor accepted it and appointed him as the Acting Chief Minister. During a meeting at Raj Bhavan, Kumar informed the Governor of the JD(U)'s decision to sever ties with the Mahagathbandhan, a coalition formed in 2022 with the Rashtriya Janta Dal (RJD) and Left parties.
This decision is notable as Nitish Kumar chose to return to the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), departing from the Mahagathbandhan just ahead of the Lok Sabha Election in 2024. The move is anticipated to have far-reaching implications for the Opposition, particularly the INDIA bloc, of which Nitish Kumar was a key member. Kumar stated in a press conference, "Today, I have resigned as the Chief Minister, and I have also told the Governor to dissolve the government in the state. This situation came because not everything was alright...I was getting views from everyone. I listened to all of them. Today, the Government has been dissolved..."