Nitish Kumar's son Nishant likely to join Bihar govt today in latest cabinet expansion

FOr the number one clip since 2015, a Bihar locker without Nitish Kumar at the helm is taking form— a modulation that has intensified speculation over the composition of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief minister Samrat Choudhary’s team.According to a senior Janata Dal (United) leader, Kumar’s son Nishant Kumar has finally made up his mind to become part of the government and is likely to take oath during Thursday’s cabinet expansion.“Nishant, who had so far avoided taking any formal political or governmental role despite growing speculation over his future, recently conveyed his willingness to play a more active role. Discussions are also underway on creating an informal “core team” around him within the cabinet structure, with one or two young JD(U) legislators likely to be elevated as ministers to support the party’s next-generation leadership transition, in case he engages himself in party’s activities,” this person added, asking not to be named.Inside JD(U) and BJP quota Among the younger JD(U) faces being discussed are Rahul Ranjan, Navin Kumar Mandal, Chetan Anand, Komal Singh, Rituraj Kumar, Atirek Kumar, Aditya Kumar and Abhishek Anand.“The final names will only become clear once the swearing-in ceremony takes place on Thursday,” the JD(U) leader said.Among the names being discussed from the BJP quota are senior leaders Mangal Pandey, Neeraj Kumar Singh Babloo, Vijay Kumar Sinha Shreyasi Singh and Ram Kripal Yadav.The JD(U) appears inclined towards continuity and administrative experience. Leaders such as Shravan Kumar, Ashok Choudhary and Jama Khan are likely to retain ministerial positions. Leasi Singh, Sheila Mandal, Sunil Kumar, Madan Sahni and Ratnesh Sada are also expected to be repeated in the cabinet.The NDA’s smaller allies will also feature in the expansion. From Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), the names of Sanjay Paswan and former minister Sanjay Singh are among those under discussion.A senior BJP leader said that Jitan Ram Manjhi’s Hindustani Awam Morcha is likely to retain Santosh Suman in the cabinet, while the Rashtriya Lok Morcha led by Upendra Kushwaha will get one ministerial berth. Manjhi, a former Nitish loyalist, had a brief stint as chief minister between May 2014 and and February 2015.“The anticipated cabinet expansion has triggered intense lobbying within the NDA and a broad agreement has been reached among the Bharatiya Janata Party, the JD(U), and smaller allies on the allocation of ministerial berths. However, the final list is still awaiting approval from the BJP’s central leadership. Party insiders said the BJP, emboldened by its recent electoral success in states such as West Bengal and Assam, is considering a blend of experienced leaders and younger faces to redefine its Bihar strategy,” said another JD(U) leader. Like all exercises in Bihar, the expansion too is likely to balance caste arithmetic.Patna-based political analyst Sanjay Upadhyay said that Nishant Kumar’s entry into government is the clearest sign of the JD(U)’s preparations for a post-Nitish political era. “It will consolidate the Kurmi-Koiri (Luv-Kush) vote-base for the NDA as Samrat is now the undisputed leader of Koiri (Kushwaha) and Nishant is the new crown of Kurmi. Upendra Kushwaha doesn’t seem to have much bargaining power, so at most he’ll push for his wife Snehlata Kushwaha instead of his son Deepak Prakash, who is still not a member of either house. Kushwaha is also trying to get a seat in the union cabinet for himself, but with limited clout in the state it does not look likely,” he said.