Bihar Cabinet Expansion: Seven BJP MLAs Sworn in as Ministers

Patna: The Bihar cabinet was expanded on Wednesday, with seven BJP MLAs taking the oath as ministers. Darbhanga MLA Sanjay Saraogi was the first to be sworn in, reciting the oath in Maithili.

Governor Arif Mohammad Khan administered the oath to all the new ministers. The inductees include Sunil Kumar (Bihar Sharif), Jivesh Mishra (Jaale, Darbhanga), Raju Singh (Sahebganj, Muzaffarpur), Motilal Prasad (Riga, Sitamarhi), Krishna Kumar alias Mantu (Amanour), and Vijay Mandal (Sikti).

Four of the newly inducted ministers hail from the Mithila region, which has been a stronghold of the NDA. The region, covering key districts such as Sitamarhi, Sheohar, Madhubani, Darbhanga, Muzaffarpur, and Vaishali, has 60 assembly seats. In the 2020 assembly elections, the NDA secured 40 of them.

The cabinet expansion is seen as a strategic move ahead of the upcoming elections, with an emphasis on regional representation and caste balance.