Patna: Bihar’s chief minister, Nitish Kumar, was sworn in as a member of the Rajya Sabha on Friday, marking his first entry into the upper house and fuelling speculation over an imminent political transition in the state.
Senior leaders of the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA), including Nirmala Sitharaman, J. P. Nadda and Arjun Ram Meghwal, were present during the oath-taking ceremony in Delhi.
Kumar’s induction into the Rajya Sabha completes a rare parliamentary trajectory: he has now served in all four legislative bodies in India, having previously been elected to the Lok Sabha six times, the Bihar legislative council four times and the state assembly twice.
A meeting between Kumar, the prime minister, Narendra Modi, and the home minister, Amit Shah, is expected later on Friday. According to party sources, discussions are likely to centre on the NDA’s political strategy in Bihar, including the formation of a new government and the selection of a successor as chief minister.
Earlier in the day, several senior Bihar leaders met Kumar in Delhi, including the JD(U) working president Sanjay Jha and Rajya Sabha MP Ramnath Thakur. They were followed by deputy chief minister Samrat Choudhary and ministers Ashok Choudhary and Madan Sahni.
Kumar indicated on his arrival in Delhi a possible shift in his political role, saying he would now be based in the capital while continuing to remain engaged with Bihar. “I have worked here for a long time in the past, and now I will work here once again,” he said, adding that development work in Bihar would continue.
According to sources, Kumar is expected to return to Patna later on Friday and convene a final cabinet meeting on April 13. He may step down as chief minister the following day, after which an NDA legislative party meeting is scheduled to formally endorse a new leader.
Within the JD(U), discussions are also under way regarding a revised power-sharing arrangement. Party sources suggest the possibility of appointing two deputy chief ministers, with Nishant Kumar emerging as a likely contender, a move that could signal a generational shift in the party’s leadership in Bihar.
