Nitish Kumar Hands Over Home Ministry to BJP as New Bihar Power Structure Takes Shape

Patna, Nov 2025 : Nitish Kumar, who created history by taking charge as Chief Minister of Bihar for the tenth time, has made one of the most notable administrative decisions of his political career. After holding the Home Ministry for nearly two decades, he has handed over this key portfolio to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). On Friday, he assigned the department to Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, signalling a major shift in Bihar’s political power balance and reinforcing the perception that the BJP—having won the most seats—is now steering the government from the front.

The NDA coalition led by Nitish Kumar swept the recent 2025 Bihar Assembly elections, securing over 200 seats and forming the government with a commanding majority. Soon after being unanimously elected leader of the NDA legislative party, Nitish Kumar was sworn in at Patna’s Gandhi Maidan on November 20. He promptly appointed two Deputy Chief Ministers from the coalition and began structuring the new cabinet.

According to political insiders, several JD(U) MLAs hoped Nitish Kumar would retain the Home portfolio or negotiate for the Speaker’s post. However, with the BJP exerting considerable pressure as the largest partner, the Chief Minister ultimately relinquished the Home Ministry—a department he had controlled continuously for 20 years across multiple terms.

Under the new arrangement, Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha has been entrusted with the Land and Revenue Ministry, along with the Mines and Geology Department, both crucial for policy implementation and revenue generation. Senior BJP leader Mangal Pandey has been assigned the Health and Law Ministries, while Dilip Jaiswal will serve as Industry Minister, overseeing investment and industrial development in the state.

BJP Emerges as NDA’s Strongest Pillar

In the two-phase elections, the NDA shattered the Grand Alliance’s expectations by winning 202 of the 243 seats. The BJP emerged as the largest party in the ruling coalition with 89 seats, followed closely by JD(U) with 85. Despite being projected as the Grand Alliance’s chief ministerial face, Tejashwi Yadav fell short once again. Political strategist-turned-leader Prashant Kishor also failed to make an electoral breakthrough.

Meanwhile, Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) made a strong impact, solidifying its position within the NDA bloc. The overall mandate clearly reflected the voters’ preference for continuity under the NDA and reinforced BJP’s dominant role in Bihar’s new political landscape.