Shrewd politician Nitish Kumar ran Bihar as its chief minister for around two decades, but with periodic interruptions and change of political colours. A survivor against recurring odds, he provided political stability to Bihar for the most part, kept law and order under reasonable control in a state known for its chaotic styles, and facilitated limited progress on multiple fronts. He’s hanging up his boots, not in retirement as one would have expected, but to don a different role. He would go to Rajya Sabha in April, obviously to step in as a senior cabinet minister in the Modi dispensation. With no retirement age for politicians, he would go on and on. Speculations are that his son would step in as deputy chief minister while a BJP leader would be the next chief minister.
The BJP is taking direct control of one more Hindi-belt state, where it never had a chief minister. Being the largest party in the Bihar Assembly, the post should have gone to the saffron party after the last polls in 2025, but Kumar fancied himself to be CM for a while more. Even as chief minister, the BJP called many shots from behind as a major partner of the state’s alliance government. The party would directly lead the state from now. Notably, the BJP is steadily strengthening itself, rarely accepting defeat in the iterations of assembly polls in the North. The south is mostly out of the BJP’s reach. It lost Karnataka, where it repeatedly held the reins. Both Tamil Nadu and Kerala are no-go areas for the party, while it is part of the Telugu Desam-led alliance government in Andhra Pradesh. Both Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh are ruled by the Congress. BJP runs governments in most states in the North and three states in the North-East, as also in Odisha. Nothing goes to show its supremacy would erode in the near future.
Nitish Kumar, Bihar’s longest-serving chief minister, first took on that role in 2000, albeit briefly, and has been the CM from 2005 to 2014 and from 2015 till now. He earned praise for restoring law and order in the state after the alleged goonda raj of Lalu Prasad. Tens of thousands of muscle-flexers were put behind the bars during the initial phase of the Nitish rule. He also ensured Sadak and Pani (roads and water) to even the remotest villages. Yet, with less backing from the Centre, and due to Nitish’s lack of an eminent vision for the future, Bihar had limited economic progress. Bihar has the lowest per capita income among all states though there’s palpable affluence in certain pockets. The precious mining sector did not help much in the overall growth of Bihar. Now, Bihar claims to have a double-engine sarkaar, with generous support from the Centre; more so with the prospect of the state having a BJP chief minister to guide its destiny. Nitish Kumar’s positive side is also that his image is not tainted by corruption. He won praise in the past for not encouraging his family to come upfront—which could now be an old story. The BJP would ensure as much for Kumar.
