Samrat Choudhary takes oath as Bihar Chief Minister as BJP leads govt for first time in state

Samrat Choudhary took oath as the Bihar Chief Minister on Wednesday (April 15) as the Bharatiya Janata Party leads the government in the state for the first time. He was administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain.

#WATCH | Patna, Bihar: Samrat Choudhary takes oath as the Chief Minister of Bihar
He becomes the first Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Chief Minister of Bihar following the resignation of Nitish Kumar. pic.twitter.com/ObDBH2RxJr

— ANI (@ANI) April 15, 2026

Choudhary took charge from Nitish Kumar, who is now a Rajya Sabha MP. Nitish relinquished the chief minister’s post on April 14, dissolving his cabinet in which Choudhary was a deputy chief minister and held the crucial home portfolio.
Choudhary, who joined the BJP in 2017, was named the legislative party leader on April 14 in the presence of top functionaries like BJP chief Nitin Nabin and Union minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, whom the parliamentary board had named as “central observer” for the transition.

Janata Dal United leaders Vijay Kumar Choudhary and Bijendra Prasad Yadav took oath as the Deputy Chief Ministers. “I express gratitude towards Nitish Kumar ji. Getting this responsibility is the result of the trust he has in me. The new government of Bihar will work in the path shown by Nitish Kumar ji. His way of working was incredible, and we are following in his path. The new CM has also said that we will take forward the schemes which were introduced by Nitish Kumar ji,” Choudhary told reporters.

Early life and educ,ation

Choudhary is a veteran of Bihar politics, with a career spanning over three decades. Born in 1968 in Lakhanpur, Munger district, he entered the political arena in the 1990s and has since become one of the state’s most influential figures.

The son of six-time MLA and MP Shakuni Choudhary and former Tarapur MLA Parvati Devi, he completed his primary education locally before pursuing higher studies at Madurai Kamaraj University.

Political journey and rise in BJP

Currently serving as the eighth deputy chief minister and home minister of the state, Choudhary brings a wealth of administrative experience to the role. Throughout his career, he has held key portfolios, including agriculture, urban development, and panchayati raj, under various administrations. Chaudhary has served as a two-term MLA from Parbatta and a two-time member of the Legislative Council.

While his early political journey included tenures with the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Janata Dal (United), he is now a prominent leader within the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Choudhary is a prominent leader from the Kushwaha (Koeri) community, a powerful and politically significant OBC group in the state. His elevation to the BJP state president in 2023 was widely seen as a masterstroke by the party to consolidate its influence among OBC voters, a crucial section of voters in Bihar.

Relationship with Nitish Kumar and JDU

Choudhary previously targeted Nitish Kumar aggressively, even vowing to remove him from power and wearing a turban as a public pledge to do so. He removed the turban in July 2024, after Nitish Kumar joined the BJP-led alliance.