- Nitish Kumar is set to file Rajya Sabha nomination, ending his Bihar CM tenure of 20 years
- His move marks Bihar's first BJP Chief Minister transition in the state's political history
- Health concerns and political strategy influenced NDA's decision for Kumar's Rajya Sabha shift
Around 11 am today, Janata Dal (United) chief Nitish Kumar will likely file nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha polls, bringing the curtains down on his two-decade journey as Bihar Chief Minister. Kumar's switch to the Upper House of Parliament would also mark a major shift in Bihar's political landscape: this would be the first time the politically significant state would get a chief minister from the BJP.
The buzz over Nitish Kumar's impending resignation has puzzled political analysts as he took the oath as Bihar's Chief Minister for the 10th time in November, and is set to step down just four months later. There is also speculation that Nitish Kumar's son Nishant is set to begin his political journey, an idea once abhorred by the JDU chief. The switch in Bihar, therefore, is not sudden. It is a move carefully planned by the BJP and its ally, JDU, with an ear to the ground.
Nitish Kumar's Health Concerns
Kumar, whose image as 'Susashan Babu' has helped the NDA stitch many victories in the eastern state, is 75. Over the past couple of years, videos of the Chief Minister in public events have gone viral. The main opposition, the Tejashwi Yadav-led Rashtriya Janata Dal, has used these videos to question the Chief Minister's health condition.
The NDA partners' decision to propose Kumar a move to the Rajya Sabha has been taken against this backdrop. A role in Parliament will take some pressure off the veteran leader and save the ruling coalition the effort of repeatedly countering questions over his health.
A Long-Nursed Ambition
Kumar's aides say he has long harboured a Rajya Sabha wish. During a chat with journalists back in 2022, he had said that while he had no intention of contesting the Lok Sabha polls again, he would not mind going to the Rajya Sabha. The statement raised eyebrows as he had begun a fresh term as Chief Minister just two years back.
The wish, his aides say, is rooted in the peer dynamics of Bihar politics. Nitish Kumar, Lalu Prasad, and the late Sushil Modi, three pillars of Bihar's political landscape for decades, started their journey together during the anti-Emergency agitation. So did late Ram Vilas Paswan and Sharad Yadav. Barring Nitish Kumar, each of these leaders had a Rajya Sabha stint.
Kumar has been a member of the Assembly, the Legislative Council, and the Lok Sabha, but never in the Rajya Sabha. This transition will help him achieve the rare record held by Lalu Yadav and Sushil Modi: membership in all four houses of the Indian parliamentary and state legislative system.
Who Will Replace Nitish Kumar
Bihar's political circles are abuzz with speculation over which BJP leader would replace Nitish Kumar as the Chief Minister. The favourites are Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, Union Minister Nityanand Rai and Bihar minister Dilip Kumar Jaiswal.
Choudhary, who also handles the key home portfolio, is among the most influential BJP leaders in Bihar and the Number 2 in the government. He has been a former state party chief. Nityanand Rai is the junior Home Minister in the central government. Also a former Bihar BJP chief, he is a three-term MP and a former MLA. Jaiswal is a three-time member of the legislative council and has also served as the Bihar BJP chief. Another name doing the rounds is Digha MLA Sanjiv Chaurasiya. The BJP, however, is known to spring surprises and it is highly probable that it will come up with a name not doing the rounds.
