Nitish Kumar's 10th oath-taking ceremony today after NDA's landslide win
What's the story
Nitish Kumar will be sworn in as the Chief Minister of Bihar for the 10th time on Thursday. The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) won a decisive victory in the state assembly elections, securing 202 out of 243 seats. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and other top NDA leaders are expected to attend the swearing-in ceremony at Patna's Gandhi Maidan.
Leadership transition
Kumar resigns, NDA legislature party leader elected
Kumar resigned as the outgoing CM to the governor on Wednesday. He was accompanied by Union minister Chirag Paswan, Rashtriya Loktantrik Morcha chief Upendra Kushwaha and Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya during meetings. The NDA legislature party elected Kumar as its leader. Senior leader Samrat Choudhary was made the BJP legislature party leader while Vijay Kumar Sinha was named deputy leader.
Cabinet formation
New Bihar Cabinet to have 30 ministers
Per PTI, the new Bihar Cabinet will have 30 ministers, with 16 from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and 14 from the Janata Dal (United) JD(U). BJP's Prem Kumar is likely to be appointed as the Assembly Speaker, while JD(U) will get the Deputy Speaker's post. Smaller allies like Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), Hindustani Awam Morcha-Secular and Rashtriya Loktantrik Morcha will also be represented in this cabinet.
Election aftermath
Kishor admits mistake in not contesting Bihar polls
Meanwhile, Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor called his decision to not contest the Bihar polls a "mistake." He said his party got less than four percent of the votes. Speaking to NDTV India, Kishor said, "My decision not to contest polls can be considered a mistake. We have to do a lot to achieve a satisfactory result." He also promised continued efforts for future elections in Bihar.