The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) won an absolute majority in Bihar Assembly elections, with BJP winning in 74 of the 110 seats it contested and JD(U) bagging 43 seats out of the 115 seats it fought. Among the NDA allies, four seats went into the accounts of the Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) and four to Jitan Ram Manjhi's Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular). With 125 seats, the NDA went past the halfway mark by more than three seats, while the opposition Mahagathbandhan settled for 110.
Meanwhile, even as the BJP won more seats than JD(U), the saffron party has decided to fulfil their pre-poll commitment. On Wednesday, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister and BJP leader Sushil Modi reiterated that Nitish Kumar will be Chief Minister of Bihar and said, "there is no question of replacing him".
"There is no confusion on the issue of Nitish Kumar as Chief Minister of Bihar. The decision was taken before the polls and it will remain same," he said. "In alliance, sometimes a partner wins more and the other one is able to secure fewer seats. But we are equal partners, people voted for National Democratic Alliance (NDA)," he added.
With Nitish Kumar all set to become the Chief Minister of Bihar once again, this will be his seventh time. Besides, Kumar may take oath as Chief Minister post-Diwali, said JD(U) leader KC Tyagi. Speaking to India Today, Tyagi said, "Nitish Kumar may take oath as the next chief minister after Diwali."