PATNA, 20 Nov: Bihar’s longest-serving Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was on Thursday sworn in for a record 10th term here at a grand ceremony, attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, CMs of several NDA-ruled states, and senior alliance leaders.
Kumar was administered the oath of office by Governor Arif Mohammed Khan at the Gandhi Maidan, where a massive makeshift stage was erected for the ceremony, also attended by Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP national president Jagat Prakash Nadda, both of whom had arrived in Patna on Wednesday night.
Along with 74-year-old Kumar, 26 ministers took the oath of office: 14 from the Bharatiya Janata Party, eight from Janata Dal (United), two from Lok Jan Shakti Party (Ram Vilas), and one each from Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) and Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM).
The ministers included Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha, both deputy CMs in the previous government, who have been elected as the BJP’s leader and deputy leader, respectively, following the polls that were swept by the NDA, which got 202 seats in the 243-member Assembly.
Out of 26, five ministers in the new Nitish Cabinet are Dalits – one each from BJP, LJPRV, and HAM, and two from JD(U). Eight ministers belong to the upper castes, including four Rajputs. Three Yadavs have also been accommodated in the new Cabinet, which is a mix of senior coalition leaders and new entrants, with the focus on caste and regional balance.
The portfolios to the ministers were not immediately allocated.
“Congratulations to Shri Nitish Kumar Ji on taking oath as Bihar’s Chief Minister. He is an experienced administrator with a proven track record of good governance for many years. My best wishes to him for his tenure ahead,” Modi wrote on X. (PTI)