AMN /
Janta Dal (U) leader Nitish Kumar today sworn-in as Chief Minister of Bihar for the fifth time. The swearing-in ceremony was held at the Gandhi Maidan in Patna this afternoon.
RJD president Lalu Prasad’s sons, first time MLA Tejaswi Prasad Yadav and Tej Pratap Yadav, were also sworn in.
Governor Ramnath Kovind administered the oath of office and secrecy to other council of ministers belonging to RJD, JD(U) and Congress parties.
Sources said Tejaswi Prasad will be made deputy chief minister and Tej Pratap Yadav, will be made a cabinet minister in the new government.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had led the Bihar campaign from the front, was represented on the dais by Union minister M Venkaiah Naidu. Nitish had broken his 17-year-old alliance with the BJP in 2013 after Modi was declared his party’s prime ministerial candidate in the run-up to the national elections.
In-member council of ministers, 12 from JD(U) and 12 from RJD and 4 legislators from Congress have been inducted . RJD president Lalu Prasad’s sons, first time MLA Tejaswi Prasad Yadav and Tej Pratap Yadav also taken oath as ministers. The allocation of portfolios would be announced later. Among prominent faces inducted in new cabinet includes senior RJD leader Abdul Bari Sidduiqui, Alok Kumar Mehta, Prof. Chandrashekhar.
From JD(U) quota senior leader Vijendra Prasad Yadav, Shrawan Kumar, Jai Kumar Singh & Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh have got ministerial berth. Congress leader and party state president Ashok Chaudhary, party MLA Abdul Jalil Mastan, Awadhesh Kumar Singh, MLC Madan Mohan Jha were also sworn in from Congress quota.
All family members of Lalu Prasad including former chief minister Rabri Devi witnessed swearing in ceremony of Tejaswi and Tejparatp. Lalu and Rabri became emotional during oath of their sons. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi arrived late in the ceremony so the state party president Ashok Chaudhary taken oath in last. Elder son of Mr. Prasad, Tejpratap Yadav and a RJD MLA Anita Devi faltered during their oath. Later they were corrected and process was repeated on the instruction of the governor.
NCP president Sharad Pawar, Punjab Deputy CM Sukhbeer Singh Badal, senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge, Shiv Sena leaders Ramdas Kadam and Subhash Desai, and Chief Ministers of Sikkim Pawan Kumar Chamling, Arunachal Pradesh Nabam Tuki, Karnataka Siddharamaih, Manipur O. Ibobi Singh, and DMK leader MK Stalin attended the Oath taking ceremony.
From Bihar galaxy of leaders including former CM Jitan Ram Manjhi, former speaker of Bihar assembly Uday Narayan Chaudhary, Chairperson of legislative council Awadhesh Narayan Singh, senior BJP leaders Sushil Kumar Modi and Nand Kishore Yadav were also present.