Nitish Kumar takes oath as Bihar Chief Minister for record 10th term

In a historic political moment for Bihar, Janata Dal (United) leader Nitish Kumar on Thursday (November 20, 2025) took oath as the Chief Minister of the state for a record 10th term. The ceremony is currently underway at Patna’s historic Gandhi Maidan.

Governor Arif Mohammed Khan administered the oath of office and secrecy to the JD(U) supremo. Kumar took the oath on the Constitution of India.

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BJP MLAs Vijay Kumar Sinha and Samrat Choudhary, who were deputy chief ministers in the last government, also took oath as ministers.

Other leaders who took oath today as ministers include JD(U)’s Vijay Kumar Choudhary, Bijendra Prasad Yadav and Shrowan Kumar, and BJP’s Dilip Jaiswal and Mangal Pandey.

Ashok Chaudhary, Md Zama Khan, Sanjay Singh Tiger, Arun Shankar Prasad, Surendra Mehta, Narayan Prasad, Rama Nishad, Leshi Singh, Nitin Nabin, Madan Sahni, Ram Kripal Yadav, Santosh Kumar Suman Sunil Kumar, Lakhendra Kumar Raushan, Shreyasi Singh, Dr. Pramod Kumar, Sanjay Kumar, Sanjay Kumar Singh, and Deepak Prakash also took oath as Bihar ministers.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP national president JP Nadda and several other top leaders of the NDA were present at the venue for the swearing-in ceremony. Chief ministers of several NDA-ruled states also attended the event.

Massive crowds are present at the venue, which has been converted into a high-security zone.

#WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar thank the people of the state for the NDA’s unprecedented victory in the Bihar Assembly elections.

NDA returned to power in Bihar with 202 out of 243 seats.

(Source: DD News) pic.x.com/9PBmsCQC3P

— ANI (@ANI) November 20, 2025

Nitish Kumar says Bihar entering ‘new journey of development’

Hours before the swearing-in, Nitish Kumar shared a message on X, signalling the importance of today’s ceremony.

“I, Nitish Kumar, swear by God… This sentence is a symbol of the unwavering faith and self-confidence of crores of Biharis. Today, from the historic Gandhi Maidan in Patna, this voice will echo once again, and Bihar will embark on a new journey of development,” he wrote.

He also extended greetings to the people of the state: “On this historic oath-taking occasion, heartfelt congratulations and best wishes to all Biharis.”

The JD(U) echoed similar sentiments, declaring that “history is about to be made in Bihar” and calling Nitish Kumar “a symbol of Bihar’s development and trust.”

“Let us all witness this historic moment,” the party wrote in its post.

PM Modi, top ministers and CMs attend event

A long line-up of national leaders reached Patna for the oath-taking ceremony.

PM Modi arrived as the chief guest, and Union Ministers Amit Shah and JP Nadda also graced the key moment for the National Democratic Alliance. Several governors, central ministers and chief ministers were also among the attendees when Nitish took oath.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, Uttar Pradesh Deputy CM Brajesh Pathak, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, and Chhattisgarh Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sharma were among the key dignitaries in attendance. Chief ministers of Odisha, Nagaland, and Sikkim also attended the ceremony.

Women-centric arrangements at the venue

Officials had earlier estimated that over three lakh people were likely to gather at Gandhi Maidan, making it one of the largest oath-taking ceremonies the state has witnessed.

Given the NDA’s overwhelming support among women voters in this election, the administration also created separate enclosures and security corridors for female attendees.

Nitish staked claim to form government on Wednesday

On Wednesday evening, Nitish Kumar visited Raj Bhavan, where he resigned and then immediately staked claim to form a new NDA government.

He was accompanied by Samrat Choudhary, Vijay Kumar Sinha and Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. A list of 202 supporting NDA MLAs was submitted to the Governor, who then invited Nitish to take charge once again.

Traffic restrictions in Patna until afternoon

With lakhs expected to attend the ceremony at Gandhi Maidan, Patna Police imposed strict traffic controls from 6 am to 3 pm today.

Stretches around Gandhi Maidan, including Bhattacharya Chowk, Dakbungalow, JP Golambar, Rajendra Path, Children’s Park and Bakerganj, were marked as no-entry zones.

Roads near the Maurya Hotel, IMA Hall, Twin Tower and Ashok Rajpath were also closed for regular traffic.

General public entry to Gandhi Maidan was designated through Gates 7, 8, 9 and 10, while VIPs were supposed to use Gate 4 via Budh Marg.

Parking for dignitaries has been arranged at Magadh Mahila College, A.N. Sinha Institute, SBI premises and Gyan Bhawan.