When Janata Dal (U) supremo Nitish Kumar takes oath as Chief Minister of Bihar for the fourth time on Friday, it will be an unprecedented show of the Opposition’s unity as stalwarts of regional parties and as many as nine CMs, including Akhilesh Yadav, Arvind Kejriwal, Mamata Banerjee, and PK Chamling of Sikkim, and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi will come on one platform at the historic Gandhi Maidan.
Former Prime Minister Deve Gowda, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury and NCP chief Sharad Pawar will also fly to Patna to felicitate the man who, along with RJD chief lalu Prasad and the Congress, took the Mahagathbandhan to unexpected heights of victory.
Former Delhi CM Sheila Dikshit, DMK leader MK Stalin and former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren too will
be present at the swearing-in ceremony. On Nitish invite, the PM has promised to send senior Ministers Venkaiah Naidu and Rajiv Pratap Rudy to represent him in the ceremony.
However, many BJP leaders, who had personally been invited by Nitish and had promised to attend the function, are likely to stay away. A list of guests released by the CM’s office on Wednesday did not have the name of a single BJP leader on it. However, the BJP’s ally Shiv Sena is sending two Maharashtra Ministers to join the function.
Nitish and his Council of Ministers would be administered the oath by Governor Ram Nath Kovind at 2 pm.
“This is a historic win and the swearing-in ceremony will also be historic. We have invited everyone, including our political rivals,” said JD(U) general secretary KC Tyagi.
Bihar JD(U) president Bashistha Narain Singh said Nitish rang up PM Narendra Modi and requested him to attend the function. Though the PM will not attend the function due to his engagements abroad, he promised to send two of his Ministers Venkaiah Naidu and Rajiv Pratap Rudy in his place.
Patna Sahib BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha, who was personally invited by Nitish, is unlikely to attend the function for some unknown reasons. The sulking BJP leader had called on Nitish and lalu after the victory of their alliance. Sinha has reportedly been convinced by a section of the party not to attend the ceremony against the wishes of the senior leadership.
Gandhi Maidan is under a three-tier security cover in view of the high-profile guests who will be attending the function. The SPG personnel have already arrived to take control of security right from the airport to the Gandhi Maidan and the Sadaquat Ashram for Rahul Gandhi, who is scheduled to visit Congress headquarters after the swearing-in ceremony.
Police said 18 watchtowers have been set up and entry at all the 13 gates is restricted to invitation card holders only. Around 5,000 police personnel would be deployed in and around the maidan, police said.
The three parties are keeping the possible names of the Ministers and their number a secret. However, sources said more than 30 Ministers are likely to be administered oath of office. There is still no confirmation if anyone would be elevated as the Deputy CM.
All the 27 MlAs of the Congress, led by BPCC chief Ashok Choudhary called on AICC president Sonia Gandhi and Rahul in New Delhi on Thursday. Gandhi has been authorized by the party to elect the legislature party leader and select the legislators to be made Ministers. After the swearing-in ceremony a high tea will be hosted for the guests and the legislators at the CM’s residence 1, Anne Marg.