Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday inducted seven new faces into his council of ministers—all from his ally, BJP.
The cabinet expansion, which took the total number of ministers to 36 (the maximum possible), comes just months before the assembly elections due later this year.
Governor Arif Mohammad Khan administered the oath of office to the new ministers.
Here is a quick look into the newly sworn-in ministers.
1. Jibesh Kumar
Jibesh Kumar was a minister till August 2022 when Nitish Kumar parted ways with the BJP and quit the NDA. "I am ready to discharge the responsibility to the best of my ability," he said after taking oath as the minister again.
2. Sanjay Saraogi
Sanjay Saraogi is a fifth-term MLA from Darbhanga. "I look forward to discharging the new responsibility. Earlier, I used to pose questions to the government. Now, I shall be expected to reply to queries from fellow members," he said.
3. Sunil Kumar
Sunil Kumar represents Bihar Sharif, a constituency in CM Nitish Kumar's pocket borough Nalanda. He had represented the seat thrice on a JD(U) ticket before switching sides to the BJP in 2015.
4. Raju Kumar Singh
A former JD(U) leader, Raju Kumar Singh represents Sahebganj seat in Muzaffarpur. He won the seat in 2020 on a ticket of Vikassheel Insan Party (VIP), floated by former Bollywood set designer Mukesh Sahni. The VIP had won three seats, but all the three MLAs later joined the BJP two years ago.
5. Krishna Kumar Mantu
Krishna Kumar Mantu is an MLA from Amnour in Saran district. He had recently organised a "Kurmi Chetna Rally" in Patna in an effort to reach out to the powerful OBC community.
6. Vijay Kumar Mandal
Vijay Kumar Mandal represents Sikti in Araria district. He is a five-time MLA.
7. Moti Lal Prasad
Moti Lal Prasad is an MLA from Riga in Sitamarhi.
Caste and regional balance
Two of the new ministers—Jibesh Kumar (Bhumihar) and Raju Kumar Singh (Rajput—belong to the upper castes who have been the BJP's most loyal voters over decades.
All the new ministers, except Sunil Kumar, hail from the region north of the Ganges, where the NDA has been performing better than its rivals.