‘I seek to become member of Rajya Sabha’: Nitish Kumar makes it official

PATNA: It is now official. Bihar’s incumbent Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has confirmed that he will be heading to the Rajya Sabha and will file his nomination in the current cycle of elections. The 75-year-old further said that the new Cabinet would have his full support.

“For more than two decades, you have consistently placed your trust and support in me, and it is on the strength of that trust that we have served Bihar and all of you with complete dedication. It was the power of your trust and support that has enabled Bihar today to present a new dimension of development and dignity. For this, I have expressed my gratitude to you many times in the past as well”.

पिछले दो दशक से भी अधिक समय से आपने अपना विश्वास एवं समर्थन मेरे साथ लगातार बनाए रखा है, तथा उसी के बल पर हमने बिहार की और आप सब लोगों की पूरी निष्ठा से सेवा की है। आपके विश्वास और समर्थन की ही ताकत थी कि बिहार आज विकास और सम्मान का नया आयाम प्रस्तुत कर रहा है। इसके लिए पूर्व में…

— Nitish Kumar (@NitishKumar) March 5, 2026

“From the very beginning of my parliamentary journey, there has been a desire in my heart to become a member of both Houses of the Bihar Legislature as well as both Houses of Parliament. In keeping with this aspiration, I seek to become a member of the Rajya Sabha in the elections being held this time. I want to assure you with complete honesty that my relationship with you will continue in the future as well, and my resolve to work together with you to build a developed Bihar will remain steadfast. The new government that will be formed will have my full cooperation and guidance”, Nitish Kumar posted on X.

Nitish Kumar is Bihar’s longest serving Chief Minister. Kumar has had a chequered political career. He entered politics as a member of the Janata Dal, becoming an MLA in 1985. Kumar and George Fernandes then formed the Samata Party in 1994. In 1996 he was elected to the Lok Sabha, and served as a Union Minister in the Vajpayee government. In 2005, the NDA won a majority in the Bihar Legislative Assembly, and Kumar became chief minister heading a coalition with the Bharatiya Janata Party.

In the 2010 state elections, the governing coalition won re-election in a landslide. In June 2013, Kumar broke with the BJP forming a coalition with the Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Congress. In 2014 he was replaced by Jitan Ram Manjhi, but returned to the position in 2015 leading the Mahagathbandhan to victory later that year. In 2017, Kumar broke with the RJD and returned to the NDA, leading another coalition with the BJP; at the 2020 state elections. In August 2022, Kumar left the NDA, rejoining the Mahagathbandhan. In January 2024, Kumar left the Mahagathbandhan once again and rejoined the NDA. In 2025, he won his fifth election in a landslide and was sworn as CM for the tenth time.

Kumar’s return to the national arena could also pave the way for the BJP to have a greater say in the government in Bihar and perhaps even stake claim to the CM’s chair. (ANI)