BJP appoints Shivraj Chouhan as central observer for election of Bihar legislative party leader

With this, the party set in motion the process of the formation of a new government in Bihar after former chief minister Nitish Kumar moved to the Rajya Sabha.

New Delhi: The Bhartiya Janata Party on Sunday appointed Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan as central observer for the election of the BJP legislature party leader in Bihar. The appointment is the first step kickstarting the process of appointing the successor of Nitish Kumar, who stepped down from the position of the chief minister to be a Rajya Sabha member. Nitish’s successor will be the state’s first BJP chief minister.

The appointment was announced by BJP national general secretary and headquarters in-charge Arun Singh, who said the decision had been taken by the party’s parliamentary board. Chouhan said he would travel to Bihar, and on April 14, a meeting of the BJP legislature party will be held. “I am just a party worker, and it is my duty to discharge whatever responsibility is assigned to me with complete honesty and dedication,” he told reporters.

The development comes a few days after Nitish Kumar, the JD(U) president and Bihar’s long-serving chief minister, was sworn in as a Rajya Sabha member on April 10 and is set to move to the Centre. His departure leaves aside a vacuum as well as a scramble to form the next government without rustling any feathers. As per the government reconstitution, the BJP is now the senior partner and will appoint its chief minister.

The BJP has had some hiccoughs with the government formation with some leaders not agreeing to the names put forward. The two deputy chief ministers Samrat Choudhary, who also serves as BJP's legislature party leader, and Vijay Kumar Sinha, are considered the frontrunners for the top post. However, party insiders say the high command could spring a surprise, as it has done in other states.

As per the agreement for government formation, the BJP will have the CM while Nitish’s son will be named the deputy chief minister. The JDU is keen that there be only one deputy CM.