Will Chief Minister Nitish Kumar make room for a BJP leader after the Bihar Assembly Elections 2025? Will the saffron party compensate him by providing him with a cabinet berth in the union government and making his son a minister in the state government?
These questions cropped up after Nishant Kumar, an engineer by profession and a non-political person till recently, urged the people publicly to vote for his father at a programme at Bakhtiarpur.
A B. Tech from prestigious BIT, Mesra, Nishant Kumar has always maintained a low profile, kept himself away from politics and showed traits of spirituality on certain occasions.
Will Nishant Kumar Join Bihar Politics?
The 49-year-old son of Bihar’s Chief Minister rejected the possibility of joining politics on earlier occasions.
However, after he urged people to vote for his father, it was said that “an increasing number of JD(U) workers want Nishant Kumar to join politics and contest next assembly elections”.
Nitish Kumar has always opposed dyansty politics and slammed the Rashtriya Janata Dal and Congress for this kind of politics.
Does Nitish Kumar Back Dynasty Politics?
After falling out with his old friend and comrade-in-arms Lalu Yadav, Kumar criticised the Yadav chieftain for making his wife Rabri Devi the Chief Minister when he was sent to jail.
He also slammed the former Bihar Chief Minister for bringing his sons Tejaswi Yadav, and Tej Pratap Yadav and daughter Misa Bharati into politics and giving them tickets, ignoring the common party workers.
However, much water has flowed down the Ganges river and the politics of Bihar has experienced many twists and turns.
After gaining notoriety and sobriquet of “palturam” for making flip-flops on several occasions to remain in power, Nitish Kumar has lost much of his political clout and support base.
Nitish Kumar Loses Political Clout
In spite of JD(U) finishing third after the RJD and the BJP with 43 seats in the 243-member Bihar assembly in 2020, he was elected the Chief Minister.
The BJP, which had won 74 seats, extracted its pound of flesh and installed two of its men as Deputy Chief Ministers.
Nitish Kumar made a U-turn, jettisoned the saffron party and joined hands with arch-rival RJD on August 9, 2022. He became the Chief Minister once again the next day.
The Kurmi satrap, called “Sushashan Babu” by his supporters, made yet another u-turn in January 2024, parted ways with the RJD and became the Chief Minister the next day. It was his fifth flip-flop.
JD(U) Plummets From 115 Seats To 43
However, he has lost much of his popularity. Despite serving as the Chief Minister of Bihar for as many as eight terms, his grip over the electorate and his party’s influence in the Bihar political landscape declined considerably.
The JD(U) slipped to 43 seats in 2020 from 115 seats in the 2010 and 71 in 2015 Bihar assembly elections.
Will he make yet another flip-flop before the Bihar Assembly Elections 2025?
Will Nitish Join Narendra Modi Government?
After RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav told a journalist that the doors of the opposition coalition of Mahagathbandhan are always open for Nitish Kumar, the rumour of the Chief Minister parting ways once again is spreading.
Political analysts believe, another reversal will only dent Nitish Kumar’s image further. However, he is in the twilight years of his political career.
Political observers believe, it will not be a bad idea if Nitish Kumar makes room for a BJP leader, who makes his son Nishant a minister if the NDA wins the Bihar elections in 2025.
The Bihar Chief Minister may be made a cabinet minister at the centre or a governor of a state.
It will be a win-win situation for everyone. Nitish Kumar will remain relevant in politics by joining the Narendra Modi government, his son will be made a minister in the BJP-led state government and the saffron party will have a free hand to govern Bihar.
Is Nishant Kumar gearing up for that position?
