Nitish Kumar elected JD(U) legislature party leader in Bihar
What's the story
Janata Dal (United) chief Nitish Kumar has been elected as the leader of the JD(U) legislature party in Bihar. The decision was taken at a meeting of newly elected MLAs in Patna on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has announced Samrat Choudhary as the leader and Vijay Kumar Sinha as the deputy leader. This comes ahead of a meeting of National Democratic Alliance (NDA) constituents, where Kumar is also expected to be named as the alliance's leader.
Oath ceremony
Kumar to be sworn in as Bihar CM again
Kumar is expected to take oath as the chief minister of Bihar for a record 10th time. The oath-taking ceremony will be held at Patna's historic Gandhi Maidan on Thursday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, other Union ministers, and CMs of NDA-ruled states are expected to attend the ceremony. Ahead of the oath-taking, he resigned as head of the outgoing government and submitted letters of support from all NDA constituents to Governor Arif Mohammad Khan.
Speaker negotiations
Lobbying for Assembly Speaker post intensifies
Intense lobbying is underway among NDA partners to finalize cabinet berths and the Assembly Speaker post. Sources told news agency PTI on Tuesday that efforts are underway to reach a consensus among NDA allies over the post of Assembly Speaker, as both the BJP and the JD(U) are staking their claims for the position. In the outgoing Assembly, BJP leader Nand Kishore Yadav was speaker, while JD(U)'s Narendra Narayan Yadav was deputy speaker.
Cabinet formation
Kumar's cabinet to include 20 ministers
Around 20 ministers are likely to take oath with Kumar, including six or seven from BJP and JD(U), two from LJP (RV), and one each from Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) and Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM). The maximum number of cabinet berths is constitutionally capped at 15% of an assembly's strength. Bihar can have up to 36 ministers, including the chief minister. Other ministers may take their oaths later.