On Thursday at 11.30 a.m., Supreme Minister Nitish Kumar will take the oath of office as Chief Minister at Gandhi Maidan for the tenth time. Along with chief ministers from a number of NDA-ruled states, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to attend the event. The ancient Gandhi Maidan will host the event, which is probably going to be one of the biggest political meetings in recent memory.
Home Minister Amit Shah, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, BJP National President J.P. Nadda, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath, Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis, and Prime Minister Modi will also be present at the event. Their attendance highlights the political significance of the NDA’s strengthened position in Bihar and Nitish Kumar’s renewed mandate.
Given that over three lakh people are expected to attend the event, extensive security measures have been put in place. To ensure the ceremony runs smoothly, the administration has put emergency medical units on standby, erected security cameras, and increased the number of police officers.
The establishment of a new administration began on Wednesday when Nitish Kumar tendered his resignation to Governor Arif Mohammad Khan as the departing Chief Minister. Union Minister Chirag Paswan, RLM chief Upendra Kushwaha, and Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya accompanied him on the tour.
At a gathering of the newly elected MLAs, Kumar was formally chosen as the leader of the NDA legislature party. Vijay Kumar Sinha was appointed as the deputy leader and senior leader Samrat Choudhary as the leader of the BJP legislature party. During the talks, Keshav Prasad Maurya, who was designated as the BJP’s central observer for the selection of the legislature party leader in Bihar, was present and had a significant impact.
It is anticipated that the next Cabinet will include a number of JD(U) leaders. Bijendra Prasad Yadav, Vijay Kumar Choudhary, Shrawan Kumar, Sunil Kumar, Lesi Singh, Sheila Mandal, Madan Sahni, Ratnesh Sada, Mohammad Zama Khan, Jayant Raj, Umesh Singh Kushwaha, and Ashok Choudhary are all likely contenders. Samrat Choudhary, Prem Kumar, Mangal Pandey, Vijay Kumar Sinha, Nitish Mishra, Renu Devi, Jibesh Kumar, Neeraj Kumar Singh, Janak Ram, Hari Sahni, Kedar Prasad Gupta, Surendra Mehta, Santosh Kumar Singh, Sunil Kumar, and Motil Lal Prasad are among the BJP leaders who are probably going to stay in ministerial positions.
Dramatic alliances, audacious choices, and a reputation for strategic adaptability characterize Nitish Kumar’s forty-year political career. In 1985, he won his first Assembly election while serving in the Janata Dal. He collaborated closely with Lalu Prasad Yadav in his early years and backed him when he was appointed Leader of the Opposition in 1989. However, as Nitish and a number of colleagues grew more irritated with Lalu’s centralized control over the party, the relationship progressively broke down.
Nitish contributed significantly, however subtly, to one of the first significant uprisings against Lalu Prasad in 1994. Driven tactically by Nitish but outwardly led by George Fernandes, a group of 14 MPs split up to create the Janata Dal (George). The group quickly changed its name to the Samata Party, which was Nitish Kumar’s first attempt to forge an independent political identity and his first significant political break from Lalu.
His next significant change occurred in 1996 when he joined the BJP, starting a protracted and frequently tumultuous alliance. Between 1998 and 2004, he held crucial ministerial positions in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led NDA administration thanks to his performance and administrative abilities. One such position was that of Railway Minister, where he was internationally recognized for implementing a number of reforms.
With the support of the BJP, Nitish served his first brief term as chief minister in 2000. But without the necessary numbers, his government collapsed in seven days. In 2005, he launched a powerful comeback that put an end to Lalu Prasad Yadav’s 15-year tenure and ushered in what many observers refer to as Bihar’s “reconstruction era.” Nitish Kumar ruled with little political opposition for almost ten years.
When PM Narendra Modi was announced as the BJP’s prime ministerial nominee in 2013, Nitish broke from the party, ending the stability. Although the move was presented as an ideological stance, it actually caused political unrest and weakened the JD(U) in the state.
In 2015, Nitish made a significant comeback by joining forces with Lalu Prasad Yadav to establish the Mahagathbandhan, a powerful coalition that overthrew the BJP and put him back in power. But once more, the renewed collaboration was short-lived. Citing accusations of corruption inside the partnership, Nitish unexpectedly left the alliance in 2017 and rejoined the BJP-led NDA, gaining a reputation as a leader who is prepared to make dramatic political reversals.
He left the NDA once more and joined the Mahagathbandhan in 2022 after blaming the BJP of trying to split the JD(U). However, this chapter ended after just two years. Nitish rejoined the NDA once more as the 2024 General Elections drew near; his admirers praised this decision as practical, while his detractors branded it predictable.
His political calculations seem to have paid off once more in 2025. Nitish Kumar is scheduled to take the oath of office as Chief Minister for the ninth time, solidifying his position as one of India’s most enduring—and unpredictable—political personalities with his alliance solidified and electoral support reinvigorated.
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