Bihar is gearing up for a historic political event as veteran leader Nitish Kumar is set to take oath as the Chief Minister for the 10th time. Following the National Democratic Alliance’s (NDA) sweeping victory in the recently concluded Bihar Assembly elections, preparations for government formation have intensified across Patna and Delhi.
Senior leaders from the Janata Dal (United), Bharatiya Janata Party, Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), Hindustani Awam Morcha, and Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLDM) have held multiple rounds of meetings to finalise the new government structure. Political observers say there is widespread agreement among the NDA partners that Nitish Kumar should continue as Chief Minister, reflecting his administrative experience and acceptability across various communities in the state.
The JDU legislative party is scheduled to meet on Monday to officially propose Nitish Kumar’s name. Meetings of other NDA parties’ legislative groups are also expected to be completed soon. Sources indicate that Chirag Paswan has held discussions with LJP (Ram Vilas) leaders, while top leaders from all five NDA parties have conferred with Kumar to ensure a smooth transition. 
Preparations for the swearing-in ceremony have begun at Patna’s historic Gandhi Maidan, which has hosted several major political events in the past. The ceremony, likely to be held on November 20, is expected to see the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, several chief ministers, and senior NDA leaders. Officials say the caretaker government, led by Nitish Kumar, will hold its last cabinet meeting before recommending the dissolution of the current setup and paving the way for the new government.
The new cabinet is expected to include around 34 ministers. Of these, 15 will come from the BJP, 14 from the JDU, three from the LJP, and one each from HAM and RLDM. Political analysts note that the NDA will leave a few ministerial posts vacant to allow for future adjustments. Some existing ministers may not return due to electoral defeats or internal reshuffling. For instance, JDU leader Sumit Singh, who lost the election, will not be part of the new council.
BJP leader Samrat Chaudhary is expected to continue as Deputy Chief Minister, while another Deputy CM from an upper-caste community may also be appointed. The BJP is pushing to retain the Assembly Speaker’s post as well. On the JDU side, leaders such as Vijendra Prasad Yadav, Vijay Kumar Chaudhary, Shravan Kumar, Leshi Singh, Sheela Mandal, Maheshwar Hazari, Shyam Rajak, Madan Sahni, Jama Khan, Jayant Raj, and Sunil Kumar are likely to continue as ministers.
Among BJP leaders, Samrat Chaudhary, Vijay Sinha, Mangal Pandey, Nitin Naveen, Nitish Mishra, and Renu Devi are expected to return. The cabinet may also see new faces such as Ram Kripal Yadav, Sunil Kumar Pintu, and Shreyasi Singh. HAM’s Santosh Suman is likely to be retained, and the LJP may include its state president, Raju Tiwari. There are also expectations that Upendra Kushwaha may nominate his wife for a ministerial post.
