Patna: Bihar’s newly expanded NDA government was sworn in on Thursday at Gandhi Maidan in Patna, with 32 ministers taking the oath in the presence of senior national and state leaders. Among the new entrants was Nishant Kumar, son of former chief minister Nitish Kumar, whose debut at the ceremony drew attention after a brief and humorous mix-up during the signing process.
The expansion of the cabinet under chief minister Samrat Choudhary saw representation from multiple NDA allies. The Bharatiya Janata Party secured 15 ministerial berths, while Janata Dal (United) received 13. The Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) was allotted two positions, and Hindustani Awam Morcha and Rashtriya Lok Morcha received one each.
Prime minister Narendra Modi attended the ceremony alongside home minister Amit Shah, defence minister Rajnath Singh and Union health minister JP Nadda. Several chief ministers from NDA-ruled states were also present, along with Bihar-based Union ministers including Chirag Paswan, Rajiv Ranjan Singh, popularly known as Lalan Singh, and Jitan Ram Manjhi. Rashtriya Lok Morcha chief Upendra Kushwaha also attended.
A notable moment unfolded during the swearing-in of the first group of ministers, which included Shrawon Kumar, Vijay Kumar Sinha, Dilip Jaiswal, Nishant Kumar and Leshi Singh.
After taking the oath administered by the governor, the ministers moved to a table on the stage to sign official documents. Five chairs had been arranged in sequence, with each minister’s papers placed before their designated seat.
While Shrawon Kumar and Vijay Kumar Sinha quickly took their places, Nishant Kumar inadvertently sat in the chair assigned to Dilip Jaiswal. When Jaiswal approached to sign his documents, he reportedly pointed out that the papers placed before the seat belonged to him.
Witnesses at the ceremony said Nishant initially suggested that Jaiswal use another chair before realising the mix-up and moving to the correct seat.
The moment prompted smiles among those present on stage. Nishant Kumar was also seen receiving assistance from senior ministers while signing the documents. Dilip Jaiswal first guided him to the correct place for his signature, after which Leshi Singh was seen helping him identify where additional signatures were required.
