Bihar Minister Deepak Prakash Nominated To Legislative Council Amid Supreme Court Eligibility Challenge

Patna: Bihar minister Deepak Prakash has been nominated to the Bihar legislative council, ending uncertainty over his continuation in the state cabinet amid an ongoing legal challenge before the Supreme Court.

Governor Syed Ata Hasnain approved the Bihar cabinet's recommendation to nominate Prakash to the state legislature's upper house. With the governor's assent, Prakash has officially become a member of the legislative council and is expected to take the oath in the coming days.

Prakash was nominated against the vacancy created by BJP MLC Devesh Kumar's resignation last week. Devesh was nominated as a member of the Bihar Legislative Council under the Governor’s quota on March 17, 2021. Kumar`s term was due to end in March next year but he stepped down before comleting his term, to pave the way for Prakash`s entry into the legislative council.

The nomination assumes significance as Prakash's continuance as a minister had come under judicial scrutiny. A public interest litigation pending before the Supreme Court contends that Article 164(4) of the Constitution permits a person to remain a minister without being a member of the legislature for a maximum of six months. The petitioner has argued that the constitutional clock does not reset if a minister is re-sworn after the resignation of a government.

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Prakash, a leader of his father Upendra Kushwaha's Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM), was first inducted into the Bihar cabinet on November 20, 2025, and took oath again on May 7, 2026, after the formation of the new government. However, he had not been elected to either the assembly or the legislative council.

The Supreme Court sought responses from the Bihar government, Prakash and the Election Commission on the constitutional issue. His nomination to the legislative council is expected to address the immediate concern regarding his eligibility to continue as a minister.