Patna: A day ahead of the Bihar cabinet expansion, state JD(U) president Umesh Singh Kushwaha on Wednesday laid claims over 16 berths in the Samrat Choudhary govt.In the previous Nitish Kumar govt that was sworn in after Nov 2025 assembly polls in the state, the JD(U) had only eight ministers whereas the BJP had 14, including two deputy CMs.Kushwaha placed his “demand” before the newly-appointed Samrat Choudhary govt while talking to reporters on Wednesday. The BJP-led NDA govt, headed by Samrat, took oath only last month after Nitish resigned as the CM after he was nominated to the Rajya Sabha.On being asked by the reporters as to how many of JD(U) leaders will become ministers, Kushwaha said, “Pahle bhi spasht ho chuka hai ki hamare 16 rahenge (We have already made it clear that we will have 16),” Kushwaha said.The council of ministers is set to undergo an expansion on Thursday at a grand function, which is likely to be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union home minister Amit Shah and BJP president Nitin Nabin, among others.The state cabinet can have up to 36 ministers, in keeping with the Constitution stipulating that the council of ministers must not exceed more than 15% of the total strength of the assembly. The Bihar assembly has 243 members.Right now, the state cabinet has only two ministers—Vijay Kumar Choudhary and Bijendra Prasad Yadav—both from the JD(U), designated as the deputy CMs. They have been burdened with as many as 18 departments—Samrat holding 10 portfolios and Yadav in charge of eight departments.Claiming it will be the beginning of “Nishant era” in Bihar after his father shifted to national politics, Kushwaha said Nishant agreed to become the minister only when interacting with the masses and knowing their views. “Each worker wanted him to become the deputy CM during the govt oath-taking ceremony held last month, but he remained adamant on going among the masses and knowing their issues before accepting the post,” he said.He added that the new govt will strictly follow the “Nitish model” and will also follow the ideology of the JD(U) national president. “Yahan Nitish model hi lagu rahega (only Nitish model will be in practice here),” he asserted.
