Believe it or not but Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s son Nishant is five times richer than his father.
Nitish, who first became a Union Minister in 1989 in VP Singh-headed National Front Government, and has, since then, served either as a minister at the Centre or as a Chief Minister, has moveable assets worth Rs 16 lakh.
With Rs 40,039 as cash in hand, Nitish’s moveable assets are only Rs 16,18,947. He also owns an immovable asset in the form of a flat in Delhi’s Dwarka, which, as per the current value, is worth Rs 40 lakh.
Nitish’s only child, Nishant, an engineering graduate from BIT, Mesra, has, however, moveable assets worth Rs 1 crore and 29 lakhs. He also possesses immovable assets worth Rs 1 crore and 48 lakhs. Together, Nishant has assets worth Rs 2.77 crore. This is five times his father’s assets which amount to around Rs 56 lakhs.
These figures were put in public domain on the last day of the calendar year. Nitish Government has made it mandatory for the ministers and bureaucrats in the State to declare their assets at the end of the year, so as to bring transparency and accountability. This is the ninth consecutive year when assets and liabilities of ministers and bureaucrats have been declared.
Sources in the Government claim that Nishant’s assets are more than his father as he reportedly inherited his late mother’s (Manju Sinha, a school teacher) property in the form of PF, gratuity and other retirement benefits. Nitish’s wife died due to illness a decade back.
Nishant also has plots in Patna, Nalanda and Bakhtiyarpur which, valued together, amounts to more than a crore.
Nitish’s ministers are also richer than the Chief Minister. Bihar’s Deputy Chief Minister and senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi has bank deposits to the tune of Rs 55.28 lakhs, besides Rs 46,600 as cash in hand.
However, it is Ram Vilas Paswan’s younger brother Pashupati Kumar Paras, a Cabinet Minister in Nitish regime, who is one of the wealthiest politicians. Serving as Minister for Animal Husbandry and Fisheries, Paras has assets worth Rs 4.2 crore.
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