BJP’s first chief minister In Bihar soon? Decision expected after April 10

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and BJP president Nitin Nabin were among five NDA candidates who filed their nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha polls on Thursday

Following Nitish Kumar’s decision to move to the Rajya Sabha, no immediate decision has been taken on who will replace him as the next Bihar chief minister.

However, according to a report by News18, the chief minister’s post will become vacant only after April 10. JD(U) insiders said a call on the successor is unlikely before next month.

Kumar is expected to take the oath as a Rajya Sabha member only after April 10.

Sources told News18 that even after moving to Parliament, Kumar will continue to keep Patna as his political base and travel to New Delhi only during House sessions.

Kumar on Thursday announced that he will be contesting the Rajya Sabha polls, bringing the curtains down on his tenure as the longest-serving CM of Bihar.

Kumar, who has been the chief minister for a record 10 terms since 2005, said the new government that will be formed in the state will have his full cooperation and guidance.

"For more than two decades, you have consistently placed your trust and support in me, and it is on the strength of that trust that we have served Bihar and all of you with complete dedication. It was the power of your trust and support that has enabled Bihar today to present a new dimension of development and dignity," he said in a post on X, expressing gratitude to the people of the state.

Kumar said that from the very beginning of his parliamentary journey, he wanted to become a member of both Houses of the state legislature as well as both Houses of Parliament.

"In keeping with this aspiration, I seek to become a member of the Rajya Sabha in the elections being held this time," he said.

Five Rajya Sabha seats from the state will go to the polls on March 16.

After accompanying  Nitish Kumar in filing his nomination for Rajya Sabha election, Union Home Minister Amit Shah Thursday praised the JD(U) leader’s “golden chapter” in the state’s history and said his reputation was never tarnished.

“Nitish Kumar served as Chief Minister of Bihar from 2005 to the present. His tenure was a highly successful one. This tenure will be written as a golden chapter in Bihar’s history… In such a long career, serving as an MLA, MP, Chief Minister, and Union Minister, unke kurte pe kabhi daag nahi laga (his image was never tarnished)” Shah said in a statement in Patna.