Bihar deputy CMs Samrat Choudhary with party leader Vijay Kumar Sinha.
Credit: PTI Photo
New Delhi: As Nitish Kumar was sworn into office for the ninth time, the BJP positioned two of its prominent faces – state president Samrat Choudhary and CLP leader Vijay Sinha – as the deputy chief ministers.
“In the legislative party meeting held today, BJP MLAs approved the proposal to form an NDA government in the state with JD(U)'s support. State BJP president Samrat Choudhary was elected leader of the legislative party and Vijay Sinha was elected deputy leader,” the BJP’s Bihar in-charge Vinod Tawde said Nitish Kumar had resigned. From the BJP, Tarkishore Prasad, Nitin Nabin, Shahnawaz Hussain, Rampreet Paswan and Neeraj Singh Babloo are also set to be ministers.
Choudhary, who was a minister in the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government, was also elected as the leader of the BJP legislature party. He started off as part of the RJD government, and was a minister in the Rabri Devi-led RJD government.
He later moved with Jitan Manjhi to the JD(U) after the RJD lost the elections to the NDA following the fodder scam.
Known to be an aggressive face of the BJP, Choudhary, who hails from the Kushwaha caste, has positioned himself as an OBC leader of his own might. His positioning, BJP leaders said, will also help the BJP easy its way into Nitish’s hold over the community.
“He has made his place in the party by taking on Nitish over the years, and elevation will ensure that he will be rewarded as well as keep the BJP on equal footing with the JDU in the alliance,” a senior BJP leader said.
Sinha, on the other hand, belongs to the Bhumihar community and has been elevated as the deputy leader of the legislative party. He was the Speaker of the Bihar Legislative Assembly from November 2020 to August 2022 during the JDU-BJP government.
“Sinha’s elevation will help us keep the upper caste votes in check,” the leader said. In the BJP-JDU equation, the upper castes are the BJP’s core voters.
The elevation of the two leaders also signals a shift for the party, since senior party face and former deputy CM Sushil Modi has not been given any prominent position.