Kamal Ghorui
Patna: Union minister Giriraj Singh said on Saturday that CM Nitish Kumar will choose his successor and ministers.JD(U) national working president Sanjay Kumar Jha also said Nitish has himself said he would guide the new govt as his aim is to see Bihar in the top 10 developed states in the country. He said except during the Parliament session, Nitish will remain in Bihar.Giriraj said the new govt will be formed whenever Nitish decides. “Nitish Kumar has been a leader in Bihar who worked for nearly two decades to take the state’s development forward with effective leadership. Even today, Nitish Kumar takes decisions himself and does so at the right time,” he told reporters at the Patna airport.Senior JD(U) MLA Harinarayan Singh confirmed that Nishant will be the deputy CM and a member of the legislative council, as has been decided at the meeting of party MPs and legislators held at the CM’s residence Friday evening. Nishant will formally join the JD(U) on Sunday. However, Jha said for now, Nishant will work for the party and the JD(U) leadership will decide on his role in the new state govt.Meanwhile, Union home minister Amit Shah is learnt to have summoned deputy CM Samrat Choudhary for a meeting on Sunday. It was not clear whether Samrat will travel to Delhi or Bagdogra to accompany Shah during his West Bengal visit, but their proposed meeting is likely to be regarding the new govt formation with a BJP chief minister for the first time in Bihar.Since CM Nitish has filed his nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha, the stage is set for a power shift in the NDA for the first time in Bihar with a BJP CM and Nitish’s son Nishant Kumar as the deputy CM of the state.
