Who will be the next chief minister of Bihar? BJP may announce top job on Tuesday

New Delhi: Bihar’s Bharatiya Janata Party leader said on Monday the identity of the party’s first chief minister will be announced on Tuesday and Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan is expected to arrive in Patna to oversee the transfer of power.Chouhan, who has been appointed by the BJP high command as a central observer for the party leadership election in the new legislature, will visit Bihar on a day when JD(U) president Nitish Kumar is expected to resign as chief minister.Kumar, Bihar’s longest-serving chief minister, turned 75 last month and was sworn in as a member of the Union House a week ago. He is expected to submit his resignation to Raj Bhavan immediately after the last cabinet meeting at 11 am, where he is likely to formally announce his decision to resign.“Shivraj Singh Chouhan ji will come to Patna tomorrow and the BJP legislators will elect the leader in front of him,” the party’s Bihar president Sanjay Saraogi told news agency PTI.The leadership change will mark a milestone for the BJP, which will install its first chief minister in Bihar, the only state in the Hindi heartland where the party has so far failed to secure the top job. Even so, party leaders remain cautious in their public statements.“This is an exciting time for us. We hope Nitish Kumar will continue to provide guidance to the new government,” said minister Dilip Jaiswal, a former Bihar BJP president.The NDA has an absolute majority with 202 seats in the 243-member Bihar Assembly. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has 89 seats, followed by the JD(U) with 85 seats, while allies LJP(RV), HAM and RLM occupy the remaining seats.Refusing to speculate on who will be chosen as leader, Jaiswal said: “This is the collective prerogative of the legislature. I shouldn’t hazard any guesses. Let Shivraj Singh Chouhan come tomorrow. Everything will be clear. “Neither Saraoj nor Jaiswal commented on the oath-taking ceremony, but there is growing speculation that the oath-taking ceremony may be held on April 14, with reports that Prime Minister Narendra Modi may attend.Among the front-runners, Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary is widely seen as the main contender. Chaudhry, who also holds the key home ministership, was earlier described by Union Home Minister Amit Shah as destined to be “a big shot”.However, party critics point out that Chaudhry is not a life-long member of the Sangh Parivar and has served in rival parties such as the RJD and JD(U) for nearly two decades. They also pointed out that he had been appointed leader of the legislative party in November, suggesting that new elections may indicate that the BJP is considering other candidates.Another strong contender is Union Home Minister Nityanand Rai, who started his political career as an ABVP activist during the Ram Janmabhoomi movement and later served as Bihar BJP president before joining the federal cabinet in 2019.Party insiders told PTI that the new chief minister may come from the OBC or Dalit community as the BJP is confident of retaining its upper caste base but hopes to expand support from other social groups in Bihar’s caste-sensitive political landscape shaped by Mandal-era politics.Meanwhile, attention has also turned to Nitish Kumar’s only son Nishant, who joined the JD(U) only last month.Some JD(U) leaders have suggested that the 44-year-old, who is not yet a member of the state legislature, could be inducted into the new cabinet as deputy chief minister. Others believe Nitish Kumar reportedly allowed his son to join politics only under pressure from party workers, who wanted him to gain experience before taking on a prominent role.For now, the father and son seem to be accepting the transition calmly as their belongings are being transferred to another government bungalow near Anne Marg 1, the chief minister’s official residence, which is about to welcome a new tenant.