Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Samrat Chaudhary was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Bihar on Wednesday. Chaudhary reached Bihar Lok Bhawan, the Governor’s residence, this morning, where he took oath as the Chief Minister.
He replaces Nitish Kumar, who served as the state leader for more than a decade before deciding to move to the Rajya Sabha.
Bihar Governor Syed Ata Hasnain administered the oath of office to Samrat Chaudhary at Lok Bhawan in Patna. After the resignation of Nitish Kumar, Samrat Chaudhary has become the first Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Chief Minister of Bihar.
Vijay Kumar Chaudhary and Bijendra Prasad Yadav were sworn in as Deputy Chief Ministers of Bihar.
The 57-year-old leader faces a huge responsibility as he is set to succeed Nitish Kumar, who was sworn in as chief minister for a record 10th time in 2025 following the NDA’s historic victory in the assembly elections.
His promotion marks the end of Nitish Kumar’s era of “good governance” and the beginning of a new chapter for the NDA in Bihar.
Chaudhary’s rise to power is remarkable, especially considering his humble beginnings in politics. He started his career with Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) in the 1990s and later joined BJP in 2018.
Born in 1968, Samrat Chaudhary comes from a family with deep roots in politics. His father, Shakuni Chaudhary, has been a six-time MLA from the Tarapur constituency. His mother, Parvati Devi, had won the election from the same seat in 1998 on the then Samata Party ticket.
Before the renewal of the alliance of BJP and JDU in 2024, Choudhary was Nitish Kumar’s sharpest critic. In 2022, he had publicly announced that he would not take off his saffron turban (known as Muretha in Bihar) until Nitish Kumar was ousted from power.
He was appointed the state president of BJP in 2023 and later became the Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar in 2024.
After the landslide victory of NDA to power in the 2025 assembly elections, speculations about Nitish Kumar moving away from state politics became even more intense. Due to his strong hold in the OBC community and aggressive political style, Samrat Chaudhary has always been prominent among the contenders for the post of Chief Minister.
Ahead of the swearing-in ceremony this morning, Union Minister Chirag Paswan met Chaudhary and wished him all the best for his upcoming tenure.
Paswan concluded the letter by saying, “Today, before taking oath as the Chief Minister of Bihar in Patna, I met my brother Shri Samrat Choudhary ji and congratulated him on being elected the leader of the NDA Legislative Party and extended my good wishes. I am confident that under your leadership, Bihar will scale new heights of development, good governance and prosperity.”
Chaudhary’s appointment is being seen as a strategic move to strengthen the party’s reach among OBC communities, especially the Koeri/Kushwaha group.
