Patna, Nov 18: Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya has been appointed the central observer for the BJP legislature party meeting scheduled in Patna on Tuesday, where the party is set to choose its leader. The decision was cleared in New Delhi, with BJP president J.P. Nadda issuing an order naming Maurya to supervise the election of the BJP legislature party chief in the Bihar Assembly.
According to the communication, Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal and former Union Minister Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti will join him as co-observers. A senior party functionary noted that the three leaders were asked to “ensure a smooth and transparent election process.”
All partners of the ruling National Democratic Alliance are meeting separately in Patna today to elect their own legislature party leaders. Once those meetings conclude, alliance sources said the NDA is expected to formally choose Nitish Kumar as the leader of its legislature party in the Assembly. One senior leader mentioned that “the consensus around Nitish Kumar is already clear within the alliance.”
The oath-taking ceremony for the new government is likely on November 20, party officials in Patna said.
In parallel, internal discussions indicate that the incoming Bihar Cabinet may feature a record number of women ministers this time. Leaders involved in the planning noted that the move is meant as a “gesture of gratitude” for what the NDA believes was an overwhelming endorsement from women voters.
The NDA swept the election with 202 seats in the 243-member Bihar Assembly, leaving the Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Congress with one of their weakest performances in recent years. One senior strategist said the opposition had been “reduced to political insignificance” after the mandate delivered by voters across the state.
