Bihar Chief Minister Shri Nitish Kumar is stepping away from active electoral politics in the state after nearly 40 years and has decided to make his debut in the country’s upper house, the Rajya Sabha. Nitish Babu first entered the Legislative Assembly in 1985. There is no doubt that Bihar’s politics for the last 20 years has revolved largely around him, because in the 2005 Assembly elections, the spectacular victory his party, Janata Dal (United), achieved in alliance with the BJP changed the entire political landscape of Bihar and also reshaped the tone of social justice politics that had emerged after the implementation of the Mandal Commission report in 1990.
From 1990 to 2005, Shri Lalu Prasad Yadav, considered Nitish Babu’s contemporary and ally in the state’s political arena, experienced a rise and fall that ultimately highlighted Nitish Babu’s relatively clean and gentle social justice politics, which came to be recognized as “good governance” in political circles. Over the past 20 years, Nitish Babu, having taken oath as Chief Minister of Bihar ten times, leveraged this image so effectively that he came to be called “Sushasan Babu” (Mr. Good Governance). Even Shri Lalu Prasad, who emerged as his tough rival over time, could not shake this reputation. In the 2015 elections, when Lalu Prasad’s party, RJD, allied with Nitish Kumar’s JD(U), they had to continue building on this very image. But with Nitish Babu now announcing his decision to step down, Bihar’s politics could take another significant turn, with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party playing a key role at the center.
Those familiar with Bihar’s politics know that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its precursor, the Jan Sangh, have struggled for over 55 years to establish a political foothold in the state. However, this journey gained momentum only when they received support from Shri Nitish Kumar. Nitish Babu’s greatest strength was that he gave a social dimension to the BJP’s rigid Hindu nationalist politics and reshaped Bihar’s caste-based politics with new class-based calculations. This helped the BJP reach the state’s villages, which were earlier considered strongholds of the Communist Party of India. However, this influence remained limited because, before 1990, socialist parties, led by the Bharat Ratna late Shri Karpoori Thakur, dominated Bihar’s political scene. In such an environment, opportunities for the BJP were not substantial. Nevertheless, its influence began to grow after 1967. By 2025, with Nitish Babu by its side, the BJP saw a decisive rise and became the state’s largest party.
In the Assembly elections, the BJP won a maximum of 89 seats, while Nitish Babu’s JD(U) won 85 seats. Voters pushed the main opposition party, Lalu Prasad’s RJD, to the margins with only 25 seats and gave the Congress only six seats, even though these two parties had contested the elections together. This demonstrated that the people recognized the governance that Shri Nitish Kumar carried out over the past 19 years as “good governance.” It is worth noting that during this period, there was also a 17-month term when Lalu and Nitish ran a government together, earning Nitish Babu the nickname “Paltu Chacha.” But today, the question arises: after he steps down, which party’s leader will become the Chief Minister of the state?
It is well known that the JD(U) and BJP have maintained an alliance for the past three decades (since the formation of the Samata Party). One crucial point is that Nitish Babu’s health has not been good for the last two years. This has led to various speculations and discussions, particularly concerning his mental state. While there is no official, reliable information available to the public, the behavior observed in some public appearances has caused concern among the general populace. However, the Chief Minister himself has expressed his desire to move to the Rajya Sabha, which is being seen as the conclusion of his electoral career.
At the same time, Nitish Babu wants to bring his only son, Nishant Kumar, into politics and pass on the party’s political legacy to him. This move may also be aimed at preventing rebellion within his party, but it is unclear whether it will have any significant impact on the general public, since Nitish Babu’s lifelong politics has opposed nepotism. Discussions suggest that Nishant Kumar could be made Deputy Chief Minister directly, while a BJP leader might become Chief Minister. Evidently, this could only influence the extremely backward vote bank that Nitish Babu had cultivated, provided the entire JD(U) rallies behind Nishant Kumar with unwavering loyalty. However, Bihar’s history shows that the people of the state do not believe in blind loyalty. For instance, the example of late Karpoori Thakur’s son, who is still active in politics, illustrates this point.
