Nitish Kumar Files Nomination for Rajya Sabha, Set to Resign as Bihar Chief Minister

New Delhi: Nitish Kumar, the chief minister of India’s eastern state of Bihar filed his nomination papers on Thursday for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections. He is now moving to the Upper House of Parliament. This marks the end of his long tenure in state politics, where he has served as chief minister for most of the last two decades.

Kumar, 75, took oath as chief minister for the 10th time on November 20, 2025 following  his party Janata Dal (United) and its allies, including the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), won 202 out of 243 seats in the Bihar assembly elections. Just three-and-a-half months later, he decided to step down as chief minister and quit active Bihar politics to contest the Rajya Sabha polls.

In a post on X on Thursday, Nitish Kumar talked about his decision. He said he has long wanted to become a member of the Rajya Sabha. “I want to become a member of the Rajya Sabha in the elections being held this time. I 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,” he wrote. 

“The new government that will be formed will have my full cooperation and guidance.”He added, 

His move opens the door for a new chief minister in Bihar. The new leader could come from his own JD(U) party or from the coalition partner BJP. Sources said that the next chief minister is likely to be from the BJP. This would be a role reversal in the alliance. Over the years, the BJP has grown stronger in Bihar and has become the dominant force in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) there.

In the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections, BJP won 89 seats, while JD(U) won 85 seats. The NDA alliance as a whole secured 202 seats out of 243.

In the 2020 Bihar Assembly elections, the BJP won 74 seats, while JD(U) won 43 seats. The NDA alliance won a total of 125 seats, just above the majority mark.

In both elections, BJP won more seats than JD(U). But the NDA chose to keep Nitish Kumar as chief minister because of his popularity in the state. His women-centric schemes, image as ‘Sushasan Babu’ (good governance man), and wide appeal helped the alliance win big. However, concerns about his health have come up many times. These worries from the opposition may have played a role in this decision.

Five Rajya Sabha seats from Bihar are vacant now. The JD(U) and its allies have enough members in the assembly to win at least four of these seats comfortably. Nitish Kumar filed his nomination on Thursday. BJP National President Nitin Nabin, Union Ministers Rajiv Ranjan Singh and Jitan Ram Manjhi, Deputy Chief Ministers Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha were also present during the filing. This showed support for a smooth power shift.

There were protests by JD(U) workers outside his residence. They staged a dharna and asked Nitish Kumar to rethink his decision to quit as chief minister.

Scrutiny of the nomination papers will take place on Friday. Candidates can withdraw their nominations until March 9. If all candidates stay in the race, polling will happen on March 16.

This decision has drawn sharp reactions from the opposition. Tejashwi Yadav, the Leader of Opposition in Bihar, launched a strong attack on the BJP. He said his earlier allegation that the BJP had “hijacked” Nitish Kumar has now proved true. He accused the BJP of using “tricks” against Nitish Kumar. He pointed to the NDA’s election slogan ‘2025 se 30 phir se Nitish’ (From 2025 to 2030, Nitish again). 

“The NDA had given the slogan ‘2025 se 30 phir se Nitish’ in the Bihar election. The BJP and NDA know how the elections were conducted with the use of tricks, tantra-mantra and the entire system in place. We had said that the BJP had ‘hijacked’ Nitish Kumar and they won’t let him sit on the chair again. We had said that he won’t stay in the chair for more than six months,” Yadav said.

He further said that Nitish Kumar’s move to the Centre goes against the sentiments of the people of Bihar. “The BJP has a history of ruining whoever it has allied with. The BJP is an anti-OBC, anti-Dalit, and anti-tribal party. They (the BJP) don’t want a leader in Bihar who speaks for OBCs or Dalits; they want some ‘rubber stamp chief minister.’ This power change that’s happening is against the sentiments of the people,” he added.

Nitish Kumar’s shift to the Rajya Sabha ends his direct role in Bihar’s day-to-day governance. It also gives the BJP a chance to lead the state government for the first time. While Nitish Kumar promises to guide the new setup, this change could reshape Bihar’s political future.

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Shoaibur Rahman

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