Patna, Apr 15(PTI) Bihar got its first BJP-led government on Wednesday, with Samrat Choudhary taking the oath as the state Chief Minister, marking a major political transition in the state that saw the saffron party go from a supporting role to the centre of governance. Besides Choudhary, JD(U) stalwarts Vijay Kumar Chaudhary and Bijendra Prasad Yadav also took oath as cabinet members. The two have been designated as deputy chief ministers. All three were administered the oath of office by Governor Syed Ata Hasnain at Lok Bhavan, a day after JDU’s longest-serving Bihar chief Nitish Kumar resigned from the top post. Along with Kumar, Union minister and former BJP president Jagat Prakash Nadda and Union minister Chirag Paswan, who heads LJP(RV), the third largest constituent of the ruling NDA in Bihar, were among those present at the oath-taking ceremony. Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Samrat Choudhary, who became the first-ever BJP leader to head a government in Bihar, saying his energy, dedication to public service and grassroots experience will prove beneficial for the state. “Heartiest congratulations and best wishes to Shri Samrat Choudhary… I am fully confident that under his capable leadership, while fulfilling the aspirations of the people, Bihar will touch new heights of all-round development,” Modi said in a post on X in Hindi. Choudhary, who briefly interacted with journalists after the swearing-in ceremony, said, “I will get down to work starting today. Rest assured that the model of governance developed by Narendra Modi and Nitish Kumar will be followed in Bihar.” The change of guard in the state was necessitated by Nitish Kumar, 75, becoming a member of the Rajya Sabha, bringing an end to his 20-year tenure as Chief Minister. In the evening, a cabinet secretariat department notification announced that Vijay Kumar Chaudhary and Bijendra Prasad Yadav, both of whom have headed the JD(U)’s Bihar unit in the past, were being designated as deputy chief ministers. According to the notification, the Chief Minister has retained the Home portfolio, and about 30 other crucial departments, including health, agriculture, industry and vigilance. Earlier, the state home ministry was with Samrat Chaudhary as a deputy chief minister. Samrat Choudhary has been in politics for nearly three decades, though the 57-year-old leader joined the BJP only nine years ago. Among the 10 departments allocated to Vijay Kumar Chaudhary are water resources, parliamentary affairs and information and public relations, all of which he held in the previous government. Bijendra Prasad Yadav has been allocated eight departments, including power, finance and planning and development, all of which he was handling in the Nitish Kumar government. Both the Deputy CMs had begun their political career in the 1980s and were counted on by Nitish Kumar for their experience, competence and political loyalty. After the oath-taking ceremony, the chief minister went to the secretariat, where he held a meeting with government officials, whom he briefed about the priorities of his administration. Later, Choudhary also visited the BJP office, where he was felicitated by party workers. Choudhary, who began his political career in 1999 with the RJD, the BJP’s principal rival in the state, was teased by the leader of the opposition, Tejashwi Yadav. In a social media post, Yadav, the RJD’s working president, whose heated exchanges with Choudhary inside the assembly have made headlines on many occasions, called the BJP leader “a selected Chief Minister” who had “upstaged” Nitish Kumar, the man “elected” to the top post. The reference was to the NDA having declared during the assembly polls held in November last year that the JD(U) supremo will lead the coalition “from 2025 to 2030 (pachis se tees, phir se Nitish)”. Meanwhile, NDA sources said they were expecting a cabinet expansion at the earliest, since the current arrangement left no scope to ensure that different caste groups were represented. The CM himself is a Koeri, a powerful OBC group, which is said to have played a key role in the BJP central leadership’s decision to back him for the top job. Vijay Kumar Chaudhary is a Bhumihar, an upper caste group that is known to be inclined more towards the BJP than his own JD(U). Bijendra Prasad Yadav belongs to the state’s most populous OBC group, which has, however, been aligned with the RJD, the main party in opposition. “At present, the cabinet has no Dalit and no woman. Representation of both is a must in the current political climate,” said a BJP leader. A JD(U) leader hoped that the cabinet would include a Kurmi, the OBC group to which Nitish Kumar belongs, and a Muslim, in line with the party’s strategy of projecting a “secular” image. PTI SUK PKD NAC PYK PYK
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