Nitish Kumar of JD(U) on Monday became the Chief Minister
of Bihar for the fourth straight time, belying all the doomsayers who had nearly
written him off just before the election as a spent force.

Kumar, a longtime ally of the BJP, was the subject of a number
of political obituaries, which detailed why it was improbable for him to become
the CM of Bihar after three terms, during one of which he executed a political somersault when he changed factions. 

But Kumar managed to defy all political calculations despite
getting one-third less seats than what he got the last time.

His party got 43 seats in all, down from 71 last assembly election. On the other hand, BJP, which got 53 seats in 2015, managed
the sweep 74 seats this time.

Also read: ‘Last poll’ remarks misunderstood, clarifies Bihar CM Nitish Kumar

It was this diminished status of his party in the alliance,
which likely became the cause of removal of Sushil Modi as the
deputy CM of the state. Modi, a known confidante of Kumar, was replaced
by not one but two deputy CMs this time, both of whom are from BJP and said to be hardcore
party loyalists.

But the CM refused to divulge much on the snub to Modi, choosing to sidestep it, and directed the volley to BJP saying it’s his, Modi’s, party which should be asked about it. 

Also read: BJP should be asked about this: Nitish Kumar on Sushil Modi snub

Tarkishore Prasad and Renu Devi, both fourth and fifth time
MLAs, respectively, took oath as the deputy CM of Bihar on Monday along with
Kumar.

Prasad, 64, belongs to the same Vaishya community as Sushil
Modi, but the big difference is that Modi hails from Rajsthan while Prasad is
from Katihar in Bihar. 

Renu Devi, elected from Bettiah, was elected to Bihar
Assembly for the first time in 2000, and since then has lost the seat only once
to Madan Mohan Tiwari of Congress in 2015. She lost the election by around 2000
votes.

Devi belongs to Nonia caste in Extreme Backward Castes
category– a category which was carved by Kumar in his first full term as CM to
consolidate a vote-base to counter the dominant Yadavs and dalits, then under
sway of Lalu Prasad of RJD and Ram Vilas Paswan of LJP.

Fourteen other MLAs also took oath on Monday, which included
Santosh Kumar Suman, son of Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) chief Jitan Ram
Manjhi, Mukesh Sahni of Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP), and Vijay Kumar
Choudhary, Vijendra Prasad Yadav, Ashok Choudhary and Mewa Lal Choudhary from
the JD (U).

It is being speculated the JD (U) will get 14 cabinet berths
and a lion’s share of the rest of the cabinet will go to the BJP—the senior
partner in the alliance.

The previous Bihar cabinet had 27 ministers in all.
According to the state assembly law, the government is allowed to induct a
maximum of 36 ministers in the cabinet.