D(U) supremo Nitish Kumar waves to the gathering during his swearing-in ceremony.
Credit: PTI photo
JD(U) supremo Nitish Kumar was sworn in as the chief minister of Bihar for a record 10th time on Thursday at Gandhi Maidan in Patna with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah among those who were present at the swearing-in.
Governor Arif Mohammed Khan administered the oath of office and secrecy to him. Kumar took the oath on the Constitution of India.
Nitish, who already holds the title of being the longest serving chief minister, is now extending his 20 year stint.
The swearing-in ceremony was attended by PM Modi, Amit Shah, BJP national president J P Nadda and several other top leaders of the NDA.
The event was also attended by chief ministers of several NDA ruled states.
"My heartiest congratulations to all the colleagues who took oath as ministers in the Bihar government. This is a splendid team of dedicated leaders, which will take Bihar to new heights. My best wishes to all of them!" Modi said on X.
Modi, whose charisma had played a big role in the NDA's massive victory in the assembly polls, regaled the crowds when, towards the end of the ceremony, he rotated his 'gamchha' in his signature style.
Prominent among those who took the oath on the occasion were Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha, the leader and deputy leader, respectively, of the BJP legislative party, both of whom were deputy CMs in the previous NDA government in the state.
At least three ministers are members of the state legislative council.
They are JD(U) national general secretary Ashok Choudhary, one of the most trusted aides of the CM, state BJP president Dilip Jaiswal and Hindustani Awam Morcha chief Santosh Kumar Suman.
Shreyasi Singh, an award-winning shooter who got elected from Jamui for a second consecutive term, was a new entrant into the cabinet.
Rama Nishad, wife of former Muzaffarpur MP Ajay Nishad, who had joined the BJP in the thick of elections and got elected from Aurai, has also been inducted into the state cabinet.
Another ninth-term MLA Bijendra Prasad Yadav, from the JD(U), was back in the state cabinet.
None of the inductees were from Union minister Chirag Paswan's LJPRV and Rajya Sabha MP Upendra Kushwaha's RLM, which have 19 and four berths, respectively.
In the outgoing government, the BJP had 15 ministers, JD(U) 12, including CM Nitish Kumar, Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) had one, and one minister who was an Independent candidate.
(with PTI inputs)