Patna, April 10 Bihar Deputy Chief Ministers Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha, along with other NDA leaders, congratulated JD(U) supremo Nitish Kumar on taking oath as a Rajya Sabha member on Friday.
The oath was administered by Rajya Sabha Chairman C P Radhakrishnan in his chamber in a brief ceremony this afternoon, in the presence of Union Minister J P Nadda, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, and Minister of State for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal, among others.
"Heartiest congratulations and best wishes to Nitish Kumar on taking the oath as a member of the Rajya Sabha. Your historic contributions towards good governance, development, and social justice in Bihar, along with the establishment of strong infrastructure, improved education and healthcare systems, effective initiatives for women's empowerment, and a robust law and order framework, have given the state a new identity," Choudhary wrote in a post on X.
He said Kumar has achieved "historic distinction" by being a member of both Houses of Parliament and both Houses of the Bihar Legislature.
"We are confident that his experience, vision, and dedication to public welfare will provide new direction to national policies in the Rajya Sabha," he said.
Under Nitish Kumar's leadership, Choudhary said, Bihar has written a "new chapter of progress and inclusive development", which is guided by the mantra of "development with justice".
"Heartiest congratulations and best wishes to Nitish Kumar ji. I wish him a tremendously successful and bright tenure," Sinha wrote on X.
Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition in the state assembly, Tejashwi Yadav, alleged that the decision to go to Rajya Sabha is "not Nitish Kumar's wish" but has been "imposed on him".
"It was never his wish. This has been imposed on him, and this fact has now come out in open," he said.
Yadav said whoever becomes the next CM of Bihar, in case Nitish Kumar resigns, will do so "without people's mandate".
"There is no mandate. The person whom the public wants will not remain as the chief minister. Whoever becomes the CM, the government will be run from Delhi," Yadav said.
He also accused Kumar's aides of keeping the chief minister under pressure.
"You could see in recent video footages. While someone pulls his hand, some pull his kurta. When Nitish Kumar tries to speak, either the mic gets disabled somehow or he is prevented. Imagine how much pressure must be on him," Yadav said.
He highlighted his pre-poll assertion wherein he claimed that Nitish Kumar will not remain CM for long after the elections.
"During the elections, we had already said that he would not be allowed to remain as CM, and that has now been proven right," he said.
Bihar BJP president Sanjay Saraogi congratulated Nitish Kumar and said that his "long political experience, visionary leadership, and commitment to good governance will strengthen Bihar's voice in Parliament".
"I am confident that under his guidance, the comprehensive development of the state and the nation will gain new direction and momentum," Saraogi posted on X.