Nitish files RS nomination; Bihar govt likely to be headed by BJP CM

Nitish Kumar filed his Rajya Sabha nomination on Thursday, signalling his exit as Bihar CM and setting off a tussle over succession as Opposition parties term the move a betrayal of the 2025 mandate

On Thursday, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, the state's longest-serving chief minister, filed his nomination for the upcoming Rajya Sabha biennial polls. His election to the Upper House is a certainty, given the numbers commanded by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) — which comprises Kumar’s Janata Dal (United), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and smaller parties — in the 243-member Bihar Assembly, and he will demit his current office. The Opposition termed the development a betrayal of the October 2025 Assembly poll mandate where Kumar led the NDA to a historic win.

 

The NDA has yet to announce the name of Nitish Kumar’s successor or whether the next CM would be from the BJP, which with 89 seats emerged as the single largest party in the Bihar Assembly for the first time in the October 2025 polls, or the JD(U), which has 85 seats. There is speculation that Nitish Kumar’s 50-year-old son, Nishant, could make his political debut and be appointed Deputy CM. Others in the race include Deputy CM Samrat Choudhary of the BJP, and Sanjay Jha and Rajiv Ranjan ‘Lalan’ Singh of the JD(U). However, sources claimed that since Nitish Kumar represented backward class assertion, his successor was more likely to come from those castes.

 

 

Nitish Kumar and BJP national president Nitin Nabin were among five NDA candidates who filed their nominations for the Rajya Sabha polls on Thursday. The others were BJP state general secretary Shivesh Kumar, JD(U)'s Ram Nath Thakur, who is getting a renewed term, and RLM's Upendra Kushwaha. With the JD(U) nominating Nitish Kumar, JD(U)’s Harivansh, the Deputy Chairman in the Rajya Sabha, will retire on April 9.

 

Union Home Minister Amit Shah was in Patna on Thursday and congratulated Nitish Kumar for filing his nomination for the Rajya Sabha elections. Shah said Nitish Kumar’s return to national politics will further strengthen the NDA's “sabka saath, sabka vikas” resolve.

 

Announcing his decision, Nitish Kumar said in a social media post: “For more than two decades, you have consistently placed your trust and support in me, and it is on the strength of that trust that we have served Bihar and all of you with complete dedication. It was the power of your trust and support that has enabled Bihar today to present a new dimension of development and dignity.” “In keeping with this aspiration, I seek to become a member of the Rajya Sabha in the elections being held this time,” he said.

 

Rashtriya Janata Dal MP Manoj Jha said the post the JD(U) leader shared on X appeared to be drafted in the “Delhi Durbar”. “After reading that tweet, I can confidently say that he did not write it. The post has been prepared in Delhi. Even if you ask a 10-year-old in Bihar about the tweet, he/she will point at Delhi Durbar,” Jha told PTI. The “core supporters” of the JD(U) are “feeling hurt” by the move, the RJD leader said.

 

The Congress said a “leadership coup and regime change orchestrated by” the top NDA leadership has taken place and it is a “huge betrayal” of the people's mandate. A large number of JD(U) workers demonstrated outside the CM's residence to protest Kumar's decision. 

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(with PTI inputs)