New Delhi: BJP’s Samrat Choudhary was Tuesday named Nitish Kumar’s successor as Bihar’s chief minister–making him the first from the BJP to hold the state’s top post when he takes oath Wednesday.
Choudhary (57), held the position of Deputy Chief Minister in the outgoing Nitish Kumar government.
The decision was announced by deputy CM Vijay Kumar Sinha Tuesday after Choudhury was elected BJP Legislative Party leader in Bihar. BJP central observer for the state and Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan attended the event in Patna.
Hours earlier, Janata Dal (United) supremo Nitish Kumar resigned as Bihar CM, ending a tenure that spanned a record 10 oath-taking ceremonies. Kumar pledged his “full support and guidance” to the incoming government.
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The new CM
Often termed as the OBC face of BJP, Choudhury won the Tarapur assembly seat by a margin of 45,843 votes.
Choudhary started his political career with the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) in 1999, but parted ways with it to join the Janata Dal (United) in 2014. He joined the BJP three years later.
The BJP leader who had once taken a vow of sporting a turban and removing it only after “dethroning” Nitish Kumar is said to have developed a good rapport with the JD(U) supremo, according to party insiders.
Choudhary comes from a family with political legacy. His father Shakuni Choudhary was one of the founding members of the Samata Party, and had several stints as MLA and MP. Shakuni Choudhary was considered close to RJD patriarch Lalu Prasad at the time.
His mother Parvati Devi once represented the Tarapur constituency.
Before 2024, Choudhary won two assembly elections – 2000 and 2010 – but he also lost two times, in 2005 and 2015.
Nitish resignation
Nitish Kumar–who had held the CM post since 2015, barring a brief interlude–announced his resignation on X after meeting Governor Syed Ata Hasnain Tuesday.
“We have done a lot of work for the people of Bihar. For so long, we have continuously served the people. I had decided to step down from the position of Chief Minister. So, today, after the cabinet meeting, I met the Honourable Governor and submitted my resignation,” Kumar said.
He added, “A new government will now take charge here. The new government will have my full support and guidance. Good work will continue in the future, and Bihar will progress further.”
आप जानते हैं कि 24 नवंबर, 2005 को राज्य में पहली बार एन०डी०ए० सरकार बनी थी। तब से राज्य में कानून का राज है और हम लगातार विकास के काम में लगे हुए हैं। सरकार ने शुरू से ही सभी तबकों का विकास किया है चाहे हिंदू हो, मुस्लिम हो, अपर कास्ट हो, पिछड़ा हो, अति पिछड़ा हो, दलित हो,…
— Nitish Kumar (@NitishKumar) April 14, 2026
Kumar first announced his intention to quit as CM in March, when he also expressed a desire to move to the Rajya Sabha. He was sworn into the upper house of Parliament on 10 April.
But Kumar’s decision to step down came amid months of speculation and concerns about his health and governance. BJP also wanted its own party leader at the top spot, considering it won most assembly seats–89 out of 243–in the 2025 elections. Bihar was the only state in the Hindi heartland where the BJP never had its own chief minister.
Nicknamed ‘Paltu Ram’—a jibe at his habit of switching sides—by political adversaries, Kumar Tuesday recalled NDA’s two-decade run in Bihar.
“You know that on 24 November 2005, the NDA government was formed in the state for the first time. Since then, the rule of law has prevailed in the state, and we have been continuously engaged in development work. The government has worked for the development of all sections of society from the very beginning—whether Hindus, Muslims, upper castes, backward classes, extremely backward classes, Dalits, or Mahadalits—work has been done for everyone,” he said.
Kumar reserved particular thanks for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Centre.
“The Centre is also providing full cooperation in Bihar’s development. For this, we bow to the honourable Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji. Bihar will develop even faster and join the top states of the country, thereby making an important contribution to the progress of the nation,” Kumar said.
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