Bihar: Make Nitish Kumar NDA's CM face, says son Nishant Kumar ahead of assembly polls

Nishant Kumar, son of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, has said both the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the Janata Dal (United) should declare his father the CM face of the alliance ahead of the state Assembly elections scheduled for later this year.

“NDA should declare it (Nitish Kumar as CM face) and JD(U) workers and leaders should declare it so that government is formed under his leadership again and development of the state continues,” Nishant was quoted as saying by Indian Express. He was speaking on the sidelines of an event to mark the birth anniversary of his late mother, Manju Sinha, on Tuesday.

Nishant's comments came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi called Nitish Kumar Bihar’s “laadle mukhyamantri (dear Chief Minister). Nishant also thanked the Prime Minister for the kind words about his father. Modi and Nitish attended an event together at Bihar’s Bhagalpur on Monday.

Buzz over entry into politics

Nishant's public comments assume significance amid a recent buzz about his formal entry into politics ahead of the Assembly elections. After largely keeping a low profile, Nishant has interacted with the media many times this year.

“I would urge the youth and people from all sections of society to vote for the NDA. Last time, people gave JD(U) only 43 seats. Yet, my father ensured that the pace of the state’s development did not slow down. We expect more seats so that development works can be further stepped up,” Nishant said Tuesday.

In the 2020 assembly elections in Bihar, the JD-U bagged 43 seats while the BJP got 73 seats. The RJD emerged as a single largest party with 75 seats. Nitish Kumar became the chief minister of the NDA government. Nitish, however, switched sides and joined hands with the RJD and Congress to become Chief Minister again.

In January last year, Nitish Kumar switched again and took oath as Bihar Chief Minister for a record ninth time, returning to the BJP-led NDA 18 months after leaving it. This was Nitish Kumar's fifth switch in political loyalties since 2015.

The 243-member Bihar assembly will go to polls later this year. Nishant also appealed to JD(U) workers to go to the people and tell them of the work done by Nitish Kumar in the last 19 years. “People should tell us what more needs to be done. There should be no slacking from our end,” he said.

Though there hasn’t been any official word yet, reports suggest the JD-U will likely welcome Nishant as Nitish’s political heir after Holi.

Nitish Kumar has been a staunch critic of dynastic politics and has often criticised the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) for promoting ‘family’. But now, there is an ‘ever-growing demand from the party workers’ about Nishant’s entry into politics. The Bihar chief minister has been informed about this, according to reports.

Nitish Kumar, 73, is the longest-serving chief minister of Bihar. Nishant has so far maintained a low profile, yet his name as Nitish Kumar’s political heir has been doing the rounds within the JD(U) circles for quite some time now.

Who is Nishant Kumar?

Nishant Kumar was born on July 20, 1975. He is the only son of Nishit Kumar and Manju Sinha, who passed away in 2007.

A software engineer and an alumnus of the Birla Institute of Technology (BIT) Mesra, Nishant has kept a relatively low profile and avoided political events.

Nishant’s elevation will mean another son's rise in India’s politics. In Tamil Nadu, Udhaynaidhi Stalin, expected to carry forward the legacy of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK supremo MK Stalin, was made deputy chief minister in the DMK-Congress government in September last year. Stalin is himself son of DMK veteran and former chief minister of Tamil Nadu M Karunanidhi.

In Andhra Pradesh, Nara Lokesh is a minister in his father's government, which is headed by Telugu Desam Party (TDP) supremo N Chandrababu Naidu.