Nitish Kumar stakes claim to form Bihar government; oath-taking tomorrow
What's the story
Nitish Kumar will be sworn in as the Chief Minister of Bihar for a record 10th time on Thursday. He staked his claim to form the next government in the state after meeting Governor Arif Mohd Khan on Wednesday. Before that, he was unanimously elected as the leader of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) after BJP's Samrat Chaudhary recommended his name.
Election results
NDA alliance secures victory in Bihar elections
The NDA won the Bihar assembly election, winning 202 of 243 seats. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 89 seats, while JDU secured 85. Other allies included Lok Janshakti Party (RV) with 19 seats, Hindustan Awami Morcha (Secular) with five and Rashtriya Lok Morcha with four. In contrast, the opposition Mahagathbandhan won 35 seats, with the RJD winning 25 seats and Congress securing only six.
Political landscape
NDA's ministerial distribution
According to HT, the NDA may allot one ministerial berth for every six MLAs to ensure fair representation in the alliance government. This would include members from BJP, JD(U), RLM and HAM(S). Meanwhile, NDTV reported, citing sources, that 22 ministers, including nine BJP MLAs, are scheduled to take oath along with the CM. The list is expected to include outgoing deputy chief ministers Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Sinha.