Nitish Kumar to quit as Bihar Chief Minister; big political move may see new BJP CM in state

PATNA: Nitish Kumar, who assumed office as the Chief Minister of Bihar for the tenth time last year, is reportedly stepping down from his post. This is said to be part of the move to make Nitish's son Nishant the Deputy Chief Minister. It is reported that Nitish will hand over the Chief Minister's post to the BJP and enter the Rajya Sabha.

The move is said to have been made for Nishant’s political launch. Bihar Minister and senior JDU leader Shrawan Kumar has also stated that Nishant's political entry will happen soon. The party is expected to make the announcement soon.

This being the case, there has been no serious response from the JDU on the issue. The last date for filing nominations for the Rajya Sabha vacancies is Thursday. Sources close to the party say that all the necessary procedures for Nitish Kumar's nomination have been completed and only the Chief Minister's signature is left. There are also reports that the next phase of Nitish Kumar's 'Samrudhi Yatra', which was scheduled to begin on March 8, will be postponed.