Patna, Nov 20:
Nitish Kumar was sworn in as Chief Minister of Bihar – at Patna’s historic Gandhi Maidan for a record-extending tenth time – Thursday morning, capping a triumphant victory in last week’s Assembly election.
The Janata Dal United boss, dismissed by his critics as too old and unfit for power, had the last laugh after his party swept 85 of the state’s 243 seats to power itself and its main ally, the Bharatiya Janata Party, to a landslide win; the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance won 202 seats.
The Gandhi Maidan event also served as a show of strength for rivals of the NDA, a reminder of its crushing win; apart from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, chief ministers from BJP-ruled states and from those ruled by allies, such as Andhra Pradesh’s N Chandrababu Naidu, were present, and Madhya Pradesh’s Mohan Yadav told reporters, “Bihar is once again on the path of development… it will progress with PM Modi’s blessings… will progress through good governance and development.”
Nitish Kumar – whose longevity, critics complain, is fuelled by an uncanny ability to stay in power by re-making alliances on the fly – is already the eighth longest-serving chief minister and, if he serves out this term, will be the longest-serving ever, eclipsing Sikkim leader Pawan Chamling’s 24 years.
Nineteen MLAs, starting with BJP leaders Samrat Choudhary, Vijay Sinha, and Dilip Jaiswal were also sworn in, and will form the nucleus of the new government, with the emphasis on experienced faces.
Choudhary and Sinha, for example, were Nitish Kumar’s deputies in the previous administration and could reprise those roles for another five years, and Jaiswal was briefly the Revenue Minister.
BJP leaders Sanjay Kumar Singh, Pramod Kumar, and Lakhendra Raushan were also sworn in; Pramod Kumar previously served as Bihar’s Law, Sugarcane, and Art and Culture Minister.
The BJP also put up Rama Nishad, Narayan Prasad, Surendra Mehata, Arun Shankar Prasad, and Sanjay ‘Tiger’ Singh, and the party also named competitive shooter and two-time MLA Shreyasi Singh; the 34-year-old Commonwealth Games gold medallist held her Jamui seat for a promotion.
Senior leader Ram Kripal Yadav, earlier with the Rashtriya Janata Dal and the JDU, and also served as a union minister and Lok Sabha MP, was also sworn in, as was ex-Roadways Minister Nitin Nabin.
With 14 faces, the BJP, which narrowly retained its ‘big brother’ tag over the JDU after winning 89 seats, will take the lion’s share of berths at this time. The Janata Dal will have six faces.
The JDU’s list was led by Bijendra Prasad Yadav, Shrawon Kumar, Vijay Kumar Chaudhary, and Ashok Choudhary. Yadav was the Energy Minister and Kumar the Minister for Rural Development, while Chaudhary led the Water Resources ministry and Choudhary the Rural Works Development.