PATNA: 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.
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.
Nitish 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.
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.
Agencies