On Tuesday morning, Nitish Kumar chaired his final cabinet meeting as CM, where MLAs thanked him for his contribution to Bihar.
Later in the day, Kumar, along with NDA leaders, met Governor Syed Ata Hasnain and submitted his resignation.
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“We have done a lot of work for the people of Bihar. For so many days, we have continuously served the people. I had decided that I would now leave the post of CM, and therefore, after today’s cabinet meeting, I met the honourable Governor and submitted my resignation. The new government will now take charge. It will have my full cooperation and guidance. Bihar will continue to progress,” Kumar posted on X.
The BJP legislature party meeting was held at the party office in Patna in the presence of central observer Shivraj Singh Chouhan and BJP national general secretary BL Santhosh. Outgoing deputy CM Vijay Sinha proposed Choudhary’s name as leader of the party, seconded by Mangal Pandey.
Choudhary was subsequently elected leader at the NDA meeting. Nitish Kumar congratulated him and asked MLAs to welcome the new leader.”I express my heartfelt gratitude for the unanimous trust placed in me. Under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, I will strive to take Bihar to new heights of development, good governance and prosperity,” Choudhary posted on X after being named CM-designate. He added that he had learnt politics from Nitish Kumar and would follow his path.
After the meeting, Choudhary, along with NDA leaders, met the Governor to stake claim to form the government.
Unlike in other states where the BJP has often sprung surprises, the party opted for continuity in Bihar’s leadership.
Fifty-six-year-old Choudhary began his political career with the RJD in 1990 and became a minister in its government in 1999. He later joined JDU and served as a minister in Jitan Ram Manjhi’s cabinet in 2014. He joined the BJP in 2017 and became the state president in 2023. As state chief, he began wearing a turban, vowing to remove it only after replacing Nitish Kumar as CM. In 2024, he joined Nitish’s cabinet as deputy chief minister.
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Following the government formation, the BJP focused on stabilising the alliance, with winning Nitish Kumar’s trust seen as crucial. Earlier, only Sushil Kumar Modi was seen as enjoying Nitish’s full confidence. In the 2020 government, Nitish was reportedly not at ease with deputy CMs Tarkishore Prasad and Renu Devi. Choudhary was therefore tasked with building that trust.
