In a ceremony on Wednesday at Patna’s Raj Bhavan, Nitish Kumar took the oath of office for the eighth time as Chief Minister of Bihar, while Tejashwi Yadav received the oath of office as deputy Chief Minister. The Mahagathbandhan returns to Bihar after five years. Nitish Kumar, backed by seven parties and 169 MLAs, assumed office as Chief Minister for the eighth time.
The BJP, which has 77 MLAs and is the second-largest party in the Assembly, did not send any of its leaders to the swearing-in ceremony. Sushil Kumar Modi, a senior member of the BJP and a former deputy CM, had earlier asserted that the party was “not invited.” On Tuesday, Nitish ended his partnership with the BJP, stepped down as the coalition’s CM only to assert himself once more, a few hours later.
Before taking the oath, Nitish spoke with RJD leader Lalu Yadav on the phone. Rabadi Devi arrived at the Raj Bhavan with family to take part in the event. Also present was Tejashwi’s wife.
In the meantime, a motion of no-confidence was submitted in the Assembly against Speaker Vijay Kumar Sinha. The leaders of the Mahagathbandhan, headed by Lalit Yadav, brought a no-confidence motion against Sinha, a BJP leader.
A letter signed by 50 MLAs of the Mahagathbandhan was submitted to the secretary of the Bihar Vidhan Sabha. With this, Vijay Kumar Sinha has to prove the majority inside the Assembly to retain his position as Speaker. If he does not have the adequate numbers, he will have to step down from the post and resign. If Vijay Kumar Sinha chooses to challenge the no-confidence motion, he will have to prove majority in the Vidhan Sabha.
At present, the BJP has 77 MLAs, which is not good enough for Sinha to survive in the Speaker’s post. The new Speaker will be chosen at the same time as the floor test.
Also Read: Backed By Seven-Party Mahagathbandan, Nitish To Take Eighth Oath As CM
