Nitish Kumar, leader of the Janata Dal (United), on Thursday was sworn in as Chief Minister of Bihar for a record 10th time at a grand ceremony held at Patna’s historic Gandhi Maidan. Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the event along with several top NDA leaders — a significant gesture, as he had skipped Kumar’s oath-taking in 2020.
Among the prominent attendees were NDA Chief Ministers Nayab Singh Saini (Haryana), Himanta Biswa Sarma (Assam), Neiphiu Rio (Nagaland), N Chandrababu Naidu (Andhra Pradesh), Yogi Adityanath (Uttar Pradesh), and Pushkar Singh Dhami (Uttarakhand). LJP (Ram Vilas) president Chirag Paswan was also present, highlighting the strong unity within the alliance.
Bihar Governor Arif Mohammad Khan administered the oath of office and secrecy, formally marking the beginning of Nitish Kumar’s latest term as Chief Minister.
Nineteen MLAs were also sworn in and will form the nucleus of the new government.
With 10 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.
ELECTED AS LEADER OF JD(U) AND NDA LEGISLATURE PARTIES
A day before the swearing-in, on Wednesday, Nitish Kumar was unanimously elected leader of the JD(U) Legislature Party at a meeting of newly elected MLAs held at his official residence in Patna. In the same meeting, he was also chosen as the leader of the NDA Legislature Party, confirming his role as the alliance’s pick to lead the new Bihar government.
Separately, at the BJP state headquarters, Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha were elected leader and deputy leader, respectively, of the BJP Legislature Party. Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, who served as the central observer, proposed their names, and the proposal was endorsed unanimously by the BJP MLAs.
NDA SWEEPS BIHAR, NITISH STAKES CLAIM TO FORM GOVERNMENT
Nitish Kumar met Bihar Governor Arif Mohammad Khan on Wednesday, tendered his resignation, and staked a claim to form a new government after the NDA delivered a landslide victory in the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections, winning 202 of the 243 seats. This marked the second time the alliance crossed the 200-seat mark; in 2010, it bagged 206 seats. The Mahagathbandhan managed just 35 seats.
The NDA’s tally included 89 seats for the BJP, 85 for JD(U), 19 for LJP (Ram Vilas), 5 for HAMS, and 4 for Rashtriya Lok Morcha. Among the opposition, the RJD won 25 seats, the Congress six, CPI(ML)(L) two, IIP one, and CPI(M) one. The AIMIM secured five seats, while the BSP won one.
The elections, held in two phases on November 6 and 11, recorded a historic voter turnout of 67.13 per cent, the highest since 1951. Women voters outnumbered men with 71.6 per cent turnout compared to 62.8 per cent.
NITISH’S LONG POLITICAL RUN CONTINUES
The 2025 polls were widely seen as a litmus test for Nitish Kumar, who has shaped Bihar politics for two decades. The 74-year-old has served as Chief Minister since November 2005, with only a brief nine-month break in 2014–15. With the NDA’s decisive mandate, he now begins another term, reinforcing his central role in the state’s political narrative.
Also Read: Nitish Kumar set for 10th CM term; Samrat, Sinha remain deputies
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