as CM for the record 10th time at Patna's Gandhi Maidan; PM Modi to attend the event

Bihar: Nitish Kumar to take oath as CM for the record 10th time at Patna's Gandhi Maidan; PM Modi to attend the event

Nitish Kumar is set to take oath as CM for the tenth time (File photo)

Patna gears up for a significant political event as Nitish Kumar is set to be sworn in as chief minister for a record tenth time. Following his resignation, the NDA alliance has elected him leader, and he will stake his claim to form the new government.

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NEW DELHI: Patna is set to witness a major political show of strength on Thursday, with JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar scheduled to take oath as chief minister for a record 10th time at the historic Gandhi Maidan.

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He resigned on Wednesday as head of the outgoing NDA government.

Governor Arif Mohammad Khan accepted his resignation on Wednesday and asked him to continue as caretaker CM until the new government is sworn in.

MLAs of the LJP (RV), HAM and RLM also supported the proposal, JD(U) minister Shrawon Kumar said.

Soon after his election as NDA leader, Kumar visited Raj Bhavan with senior alliance leaders, including Union minister Chirag Paswan, RLM chief Upendra Kushwaha and Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, to submit his resignation and stake claim to form the new government. He is expected to hand over a formal letter of support from all NDA constituents to the governor before the oath ceremony.

Several top leaders of the NDA are expected to attend the event at Gandhi Maidan, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union home minister Amit Shah, defence minister Rajnath Singh, Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan and chief ministers of various states.

Hectic parley on ministerial berth

Consensus has also been reached among NDA partners on key positions. BJP’s Prem Kumar is likely to be the next Speaker of the assembly, while the post of Deputy Speaker is expected to go to the JD(U).

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Sources told news agency PTI the new Cabinet will feature five to six new faces from the two main constituents of the alliance, the BJP and the JD(U), along with representation for the smaller partners.

LJP (RV) is likely to get three berths in the new Cabinet, while HAM and RLM are expected to receive one berth each. Up to 16 ministers from the BJP and 14 from the JD(U), including Nitish Kumar, are likely to be sworn in.

From the JD(U) side, senior leaders such as Bijendra Prasad Yadav, Vijay Kumar Choudhary, Shrowan Kumar, Sunil Kumar, Lesi Singh, Sheila Mandal, Madan Sahni, Ratnesh Sada, Mohammad Zama Khan, Jayant Raj, Umesh Singh Kushwaha and Ashok Chowdhary are seen as strong contenders. Others in consideration include Rahul Kumar Singh, Sudhanshu Shekhar, Kaladhar Prasad Mandal and Panna Lal Singh Patel.

BJP sources indicated that most ministers from the outgoing Cabinet will continue in their roles. These include 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. The party is also weighing three new additions, including former IPS officer Anand Mishra, Rana Randhir, Gayatri Devi and Vijay Kumar Khemka.

Nitish Kumar’s swearing-in today marks yet another turning point in Bihar politics as the NDA prepares to return to power with a fresh Cabinet and renewed equations among its partners.