Riding on the clear trends of Bihar Assembly polls which pointed towards a landslide victory of the National Democratic Alliance over the Mahagathbandhan, Lok Janshakti Party-Ram Vilas chief Chirag Paswan said on Friday that he firmly believed that Nitish Kumar would continue to remain the state's chief minister.
The BJP and JD(U) will each contest on 101 seats in the Bihar assembly elections, while the LJP will field candidates on 29 seats. Other NDA partners will contest on fewer seats.
Chirag Paswan has warned the BJP-led NDA that it will settle for nothing less than 40-plus seats in the 2025 Bihar polls, even threatening to contest all 243 constituencies independently if sidelined.
Union Minister Chirag Paswan predicts Nitish Kumar will be Bihar CM again after elections, criticizes opposition for targeting the Army and questioning Operation Sindoor.
Lok Janshakti Party leader and Union Minister Chirag Paswan -- whose mother Reena Paswan nee Sharma has Punjabi origins -- visited the Patna Sahib gurdwara with his mum and other members of his family on Sunday, November 16, 2025 following the NDA's Bihar assembly election victory.
Unlike his National Democratic Alliance allies who rushed to the spotlight soon after the NDA won a historic mandate in the 2025 Bihar assembly election, Nitish Kumar stayed away from the public eye on Friday, November 14.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and other leaders met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla after the Winter Session of Parliament was adjourned. They thanked Birla for the session's conduct.
Following their landslide victory in the Bihar assembly polls, NDA leaders have begun discussions on forming a new government. Key coalition partners visited Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's residence, expressing support for his continued leadership. The article also touches on political developments within the RJD and reactions to the election results.
While the BJP backs Nitish Kumar as chief minister, Chirag isn't hiding his readiness for the role, reports Aditi Phadnis.
The swearing-in ceremony was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP national president J P Nadda and several other top leaders of the NDA.
The RJD leader on Wednesday had accused senior BJP leader and Muzaffarpur Mayor, Nirmala Devi and her two relatives of "having dual voter ID cards".
This election is a thank you note to Nitish Babu from a grateful Bihari people, notes Sheela Bhatt.
Bihar Chief Minister and Janata Dal-United supremo Nitish Kumar on Friday thanked people of the state for giving a 'landslide' victory for the ruling National Democratic Alliance in the assembly polls.
Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) president Chirag Paswan demands a time-bound and impartial probe into the death of IPS officer Y Puran Kumar, alleging caste oppression and harassment within the administrative system. He has spoken to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini regarding the matter.
Its ally JD-U recorded one of the most notable gains in this election, with its vote share jumping to 19.26 percent from 15.39 percent in 2020. The party also contested 101 seats this time, as against the 115 seats in the last elections, the EC said.
'This election was won because of Nitish Kumar's face and his policies.'
Janata Dal-United supremo Nitish Kumar is set to be sworn-in as Bihar chief minister for a record 10th time on Thursday, days after the National Democratic Alliance secured a landslide victory in the assembly elections.
The ruling National Democratic Alliance on Friday secured a thumping majority in the Bihar Assembly, winning 202 seats in the 243-member House, as results for all the constituencies were declared by the Election Commission.
''Now the roads in Bihar are as good as any other Indian state. The power sector has improved.' 'Connectivity, law and order, gender justice...' 'Bihar now stands for all these things that were totally absent when it was under jungle raj.'
In the recent Bihar elections, a majority of state ministers from the ruling NDA secured victories in their respective constituencies, with only one minister losing their seat.
Cracks appear within Bihar's ruling NDA alliance as partners bicker over seat sharing ahead of the upcoming assembly elections. Jitan Ram Manjhi's HAM demands a respectable number of seats, while Chirag Paswan's LJP seeks more than initially agreed upon.
'Removing Nitish Kumar prematurely risks unsettling both the alliance balance and parts of the social coalition that delivered this victory.'
Internal discord within the INDIA bloc has led to alliance partners contesting against each other in at least eight assembly seats in Bihar. The Congress, RJD, and Left parties are facing challenges in seat-sharing arrangements for the upcoming elections.
RJD candidate Satendra Sah was arrested immediately after filing his nomination papers from Bihar's Sasaram assembly seat due to a pending non-bailable warrant from Jharkhand. This marks the third such incident of INDIA bloc candidates being arrested after filing nominations.
Intense lobbying continues among NDA partners in Bihar to finalize cabinet berths and the Assembly Speaker post ahead of the swearing-in ceremony. Consensus is being sought between BJP and JD(U) for the Speaker's position, while new faces are expected in the cabinet. The swearing-in ceremony is scheduled for November 20.
Less than 10 days are left for filing of nomination papers for the first phase of the Bihar polls.
While it is evident that the INDIA bloc has not shut its doors on Nitish Kumar, those within the NDA are hopeful that the JD-U's support base would benefit them as well
'Modi and Shah made it clear that the next government will be led by Nitishji.'
Amidst speculation over the NDA seat-sharing deal in Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar distributed JD(U) tickets, while the BJP announced its first list of candidates. The INDIA bloc also faces internal challenges as parties prepare for the upcoming elections.
Shafali Verma was named captain of the North Zone team for the Senior Inter-Zonal T20 Trophy, starting in Nagaland, from Tuesday.
The National Democratic Alliance was set to sweep the Bihar assembly polls, surging ahead in over 200 of 243 seats on Friday with the Bharatiya Janata Party emerging as single largest party with about 90 per cent strike rate, reaffirming the popularity and campaign clout of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was the face of the ruling alliance through the poll battle in the highly sensitive political state.
NDA partners engage in intense lobbying to finalize cabinet berths ahead of the swearing-in ceremony of the new Bihar government led by Nitish Kumar. The new cabinet is expected to include fresh faces from BJP and JD(U), along with representation from smaller alliance partners.
"It is high time India traded dynasty for meritocracy. This would require fundamental reforms, from imposing legally mandated term limits to requiring meaningful internal party elections, together with a concerted effort to educate and empower the electorate to choose leaders based on merit," Tharoor said.
'We have 38 Dalits who are MLAs and ministers. But that does not mean the Dalits of Bihar are prospering.'
'Age matters and the way Tejashwi has been doing an aggressive campaign, only a young leader like him can do it.'
'Rahul Gandhi's problem is that he doesn't think big.' 'He looks more like an activist, while politics is like a game of chess. You attack and then defend and have a game-plan.'
The Congress claimed that dynastic politics exists across party lines and also hailed the Nehru-Gandhi family's leadership.
Call it political opportunism or sagacity, his moves, in effect, have not allowed the Bharatiya Janata Party to appoint its own chief minister to date, despite enjoying a near hegemonic status nationally and the best performance in recently held assembly polls where the saffron party bagged 89 seats, followed by the Janata Dal-United with 85.
'Nitish Kumar is the only leader who gave us everything.'
Raghopur assembly constituency in Bihar prepares for a high-stakes election where voters may be deciding the next chief minister. Tejashwi Yadav, the RJD's CM candidate, seeks a third term, facing a strong challenge from BJP's Satish Kumar.