New Delhi/Patna: Less than four months after Nitish Kumar, who along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the NDA to a landslide victory in the Bihar assembly elections in November and was sworn in as chief minister for a record tenth time, the 75-year-old sushashan babu is set to enter the Lok Sabha to pave the way for the next president. bjp For the first time, the state had its own chief minister and extended its jurisdiction to almost all of northern and central India. His son Nishant is about to join the government and enter politics. While speculation is rife that he may be appointed deputy first minister, his position or responsibilities are currently unclear.Nitish will submit his nomination to the Union Sabha in Patna on Thursday in the presence of key NDA members, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah, people familiar with the matter said. Four other NDA nominees, including BJP president Nitin Nabin, Union Minister Ram Nath Thakur and BJP leader Upander Kushwaha will also file their nominations.
The BJP has been on the back burner since it first joined forces with Nitish in 1996. Given his seniority, the BJP chose him for the top post despite having more MLAs than the JD(U) in 2020 and 2025.There was always a question as to when and if Nitish would step down due to concerns over his health, and while the handover is earlier than widely expected, the NDA feels the timing is appropriate as it will provide time for the new team to adapt. Nitish’s inclusion is aimed at galvanizing the JD(U) rank-and-file during these uncertain times and retaining its base among the key sections of backward and Dalit people.People familiar with recent developments say the JD(U) top brass has acquiesced to its junior role in the government as more and more people within the party acknowledge that a changing of the guard may be taking place, as was evident when Nitish first handed over domestic affairs to Samrat Choudhary, one of the two BJP deputies.However, Nitish will not be replaced immediately as his RS tenure will come into effect after April 9, the date when the outgoing members retire, they added.Samrat, who hails from the Kushwahar caste, the second-largest OBC community after Yadavs, is seen as the clear frontrunner after the BJP’s meteoric rise. He served as the party’s state unit president before being selected by the party hierarchy as one of the party’s two chief ministers along with Vijay Kumar Sinha. He is considered a notch above his peers and this is evident from the BJP’s decision to make him in charge of the family affairs. His social profile coupled with political acumen also helped.Another contender is Nityanand Rai, one of Shah’s deputies in the Union Home Ministry, a seasoned organizer, unlike Chaudhry, who served in several political parties before joining the BJP.BJP to lead government in entire Hindi-speaking states except Jharkhand and Himachal PradeshAs a member of Yadav, Rai’s elevation will give the BJP an opportunity to make new contacts with influential castes that have been loyal to Lalu Yadav’s RJD. With Bihar set to join its chief minister, the BJP will now lead the government in the entire Hindi-speaking region except Himachal Pradesh.Nitish has been at the helm since 2005, except for a brief period after the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, when he handed the baton to Jitan Ram Manjhi after the party’s poor performance.At the same time, he twice switched alliances and embraced the RJD, only to return to the BJP but ensured that he remained a swing factor in the state’s divided politics despite his party’s decline in recent years. When rumors about Nitish going to RS started doing the rounds, the party said in a post, “Nitish Kumar Ji is the most recognized leader of Bihar. His popularity is evident today in all quarters. It is this love and huge support of the people that is his true identity.“Sources said there was strong opposition from some in the party to Nitish’s move to national politics. “If Nitish goes to Delhi, it will send a message that he has been removed as Bihar chief minister. And this message will only be confirmed if the BJP appoints its own chief minister,” said a JD(U) member.
