Nitish Kumar's key aide selected for assistant professor's post

Choudhary, 57, a national general secretary of the JD(U) and a senior minister in the state cabinet, had applied for the post five years ago. He has been selected through the Scheduled Castes quota.

Patna: Bihar A senior minister in the Nitish Cabinet, Ashok Choudhary, has been selected as Assistant Professor in Political Science in Bihar.

Choudhary, who is one of the closest aides of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, had earlier served as Education Minister of Bihar. His selection as Assistant Professor, at the age of 57, is in the Scheduled Caste (SC) category.

The Bihar State University Service Commission (BSUSC), which announced the list of successful candidates of Assistant Professors on Tuesday evening, had issued an advertisement for the appointment of 4638 Assistant Professors in 2020.

“I had completed my PhD in 2003. But at that time, there was no vacancy. When the vacancy was announced, I too applied in 2020. A student of Political Science, I always wanted to be a Professor as my father, late Mahavir Choudhary (former minister in the Congress government in the 80s) used to tell me that one should join a good profession before getting into politics. There is uncertainty in the politics, but a stable job can ensure you run your kitchen,” said Choudhary.

He, however, remained non-committal on whether he would join the teaching job or continue with his present assignment as a Cabinet Minister in the Rural Works Department in the Nitish regime.

“Let us see which university I am allotted. If it’s in Patna, I may pursue teaching,” clarified the close aide of Nitish, who was earlier president of the Bihar Congress before switching over to the Janata Dal (United) in 2018 and shifting his allegiance to Nitish.

In fact, Choudhary made his debut as a Congress MLA from Barbigha in March 2000 and became a Minister of State for Jails in the Rabri Devi Government when the Congress was part of the alliance in the undivided Bihar.

His parent party - the Congress - as well as the RJD have slammed him on his ‘achievement’. “At a time when there is huge unemployment, a minister, who is also the blue-eyed boy of Nitish Kumar, has been appointed as Assistant Professor at the age of 57,” lamented RJD spokesperson Shatki Yadav.