Patna: CM Nitish Kumar and BJP national president Nitin Nabin on Monday vacated their seats in the Bihar legislative council and the legislative assembly, respectively, just two weeks after being elected to the Rajya Sabha on March 16.Nitish sent his resignation letter to Bihar legislative council chairman Awadhesh Narain Singh, while Nabin submitted his resignation from the state assembly to Speaker Prem Kumar through senior party functionaries. Both resignations were formally accepted within hours by the heads of the respective Houses.With Nitish now set to move to the Rajya Sabha, political speculation has intensified over who will lead the new govt once the JD(U) president gives up the chief minister’s post. The transition is expected most likely after the end of the current “kharmas”, considered an inauspicious month, which ends on April 14.The BJP camp is visibly upbeat at the possibility of finally getting its own CM in Bihar, the only Hindi heartland state where the party has remained short of the top post despite being part of the ruling coalition for nearly two decades.Several names are being discussed as possible successors. Among the frontrunners are Union minister of state for home affairs Nityanand Rai, state industries minister Dilip Kumar Jaiswal, both considered close to Union home minister Amit Shah, and deputy CM Samrat Choudhary, who holds the key home portfolio. Bihar assembly Speaker Prem Kumar, who belongs to the Extremely Backward Classes (EBC), is also being seen as a possible dark horse if caste arithmetic becomes central to the BJP’s decision.The caste factor remains significant in Bihar politics. The EBCs account for 36.01% of the state’s population, while Backward Classes make up 27.12%. Rai, Jaiswal and Samrat Choudhary all belong to the Backward Classes.Some BJP leaders believe the next CM will be “handpicked” by the party’s top leadership in Delhi after consultations with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). They point to Rajasthan as an example, where a first-term MLA was chosen as chief minister after a Union minister reportedly arrived in Jaipur carrying a slip of paper with the chosen name.Earlier in the day, Nitish’s resignation letter was delivered to the legislative council chairperson by parliamentary affairs minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary and JD(U) MLC Sanjay Kumar Singh alias Gandhiji. Nabin’s resignation was submitted by Bihar BJP president Sanjay Saraogi to Speaker Prem Kumar. Nabin had handed over his resignation to Saraogi before leaving for Assam on Sunday.Nitish was elected to the Rajya Sabha along with four other NDA leaders – Nabin, Union minister Ram Nath Thakur, RLM president Upendra Kushwaha and BJP state general secretary Shivesh Kumar.Under the Prohibition of Simultaneous Membership Rules, 1950, members elected to the Rajya Sabha must vacate their seats in the Bihar Legislative Council or state assembly within 14 days.Reacting to Nitish’s resignation, Vijay Kumar Choudhary said, “The CM has been elected as a member of the Rajya Sabha. This is a constitutional process. He had to resign today.”Soon after the resignation, rural works minister Ashok Choudhary, considered close to Nitish, was seen weeping inconsolably before cameras. “I have been with Nitish Kumar Ji in the House for a long time. When Covid-19 pandemic came, I got closer to him. He is a great leader. A respected person. He is the guardian of the state. His way of working, showing respect even towards opponents, showing affection towards all is unparallel. There cannot be another Nitish Kumar in this country,” he said.Choudhary added that legislators in both Houses would miss Nitish’s presence, saying he had been “scolding, reprimanding and guiding” newcomers and rescuing ministers when they got stuck. “Nitish had a grip on every department. He used to guide even the newest ministers,” he said.Leader of opposition in state assembly, Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, alleged that the BJP forced Nitish’s resignation. “When anyone is elected to another House, they resign from one House. That is not the point. The point is that Nitish ji has been cheated by the BJP. His resignation was taken under pressure. We had said earlier that BJP will not let Nitish Kumar remain CM. BJP has also cheated the people of Bihar,” Tejashwi said.
