Nitish Kumar heads to Rajya Sabha - Who will be the next CM of Bihar?

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is quitting. The Janata Dal (United) chief, who has been a central figure of Bihar politics for nearly two decades, will file a nomination for Rajya Sabha and enter the Upper House of Parliament in the national capital.

Kumar's switch to the Upper House of Parliament is historic, as he would be the first sitting chief minister to announce his decision to move to the Rajya Sabha. Before him, Chief Ministers have moved from the state to the Centre, but only after a gap.

Former Tripura CM Biplab Deb, for example, chose the path to the Rajya Sabha in 2022, months after resigning as chief minister. Kumar made the announcement in the middle of his tenth term as chief minister.

The move came months after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) won a landslide victory, securing 202 of the 243 seats in the 2025 Bihar Assembly Elections, defeating the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)-led Mahagathbandhan (MGB), which secured just 35 seats.

For the first time, the BJP became the single-largest party in the Bihar assembly, with 89 seats, followed by the JD(U) with 85 seats.

Nitish Kumar took the oath for a record tenth time. Samrat Chaudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha took the oath as the deputy chief ministers for the second consecutive time.

“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,” Kumar said in a post on X, making the official announcement of his decision.

Kumar has been a member of theLok Sabha many times and has also been a Union Minister. But has has never been a member of the Rajya Sabha.

Nitish had spoken about his desire before in unofficial gatherings.

Going by the buzz in Bihar’s political circles, Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, Union Minister Nityanand Rai and Bihar minister Dilip Kumar Jaiswal are top contenders for the CM post.

Choudhary is one of the most senior BJP leaders from Bihar. He has been a Panchayati Raj Minister before holding the home affairs portfolio in Bihar, as well as in his second stint as deputy chief minister.

Nityanand Rai, currently serving as the Minister of State for Home Affairs in Delhi. Before his stint with the Centre, Rai served as the BJP president for Bihar and is a four-time MLA from Hajipur.

Jaiswal is a three-time member of the legislative council and has also served as the Bihar BJP chief. Another name doing the rounds is Digha MLA Sanjiv Chaurasiya.

The BJP, however, has sprung surprises before. It may be a lesser-known name, too.

(With agency inputs)