Nitish Kumar chosen as leader of JD(U) legislature party in Bihar

JD(U) supremo Nitish Kumar was chosen as the leader of its legislature party during a meeting of newly elected MLAs in Bihar's capital Patna on Wednesday, state minister Shrawon Kumar said.

The decision was taken ahead of a meeting of NDA constituents, where Kumar is also expected to be chosen as the leader of the alliance in the state.

Talking to PTI, Shrawon Kumar said, “Nitish Kumar has been chosen as JD(U)’s legislature party leader by the newly elected MLAs."

The meeting was held at 'Samvad' located at the Chief Minister's Secretariat, and attended by all newly elected MLAs and 22 Legislative Council members of the party, he said.

"A proposal for Nitish Kumar as the JD(U) legislature party leader was moved by party leaders Vijay Choudhary and Umesh Kushwaha and was seconded by senior JD(U) leader Bijendra Yadav. Later, the proposal was also seconded by JD(U) working national president Sanjay Jha and Union minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh 'Lalan'," Shrawon Kumar said.

After he was elected JD(U) legislature party leader, "Nitish Kumar addressed all the party leaders who attended the meeting and asked them to work tirelessly for the welfare of the state", the JD(U) leader said.

Kumar, who will take oath as Bihar CM for a record 10th time at Patna's historic Gandhi Maidan on Thursday, is set to be elected the leader of the NDA during a meeting of the constituents of the five-party alliance, Shrawon Kumar said.

The JD(U) supremo will meet Governor Arif Mohammad Khan in the evening, requesting him to initiate the process for the formation of the new government, he said.

Kumar will also submit a letter of support from all NDA constituents to the governor for the formation of the new government, he said.

The current assembly will be dissolved on Wednesday, he said.

The NDA stormed back to power in Bihar, winning 202 seats in the 243-member assembly, with BJP bagging 89, JD(U) 85, LJP(RV) 19, HAM 5 and RLM 4.

In the run-up to the high-stakes polls, the 75-year-old leader doled out benefits like hike in social security pensions and stipends for 'Jeevika' and Asha and Anganwadi workers, besides the much-touted Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana, as part of which over one crore women have got Rs 10,000 each in their bank accounts.

The longest serving chief minister of the state, nonetheless, remained unfazed by criticisms and also allegations of detractors that the BJP was out to do a "Shinde" to him, an allusion to his former Maharashtra counterpart Eknath Shinde, who was elbowed out after the saffron party outshone the Shiv Sena in assembly polls to the western state.

Born in 1951 in Bihar's Bakhtiyarpur, Nitish Kumar entered politics during the JP Movement. He joined the Janata Party and unsuccessfully contested his first assembly elections in 1977. His first electoral victory was in 1985.