Guwahati: A total of 31 ministers of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s cabinet took their oaths of office on Tuesday.
The new cabinet members were sworn in by Governor Phagu Chauhan.
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) received the largest share of seats in the cabinet. Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) received 11 ministerial berths with 16 ministerial berths.
The 16 ministers from RJD includes, Tejashwi Yadav’s brother Tej Pratap Yadav, Alok Mehta, Surendra Prasad Yadav and Ramanand Yadav, Kumar Sarvajeet, Lalit Yadav, Samir Kumar Mahaseth, Chandrashekhar, Jitendra Kumar Rai, Anita Devi and Sudhakar Singh, Israel Mansuri, Surendra Ram, Kartikeya Singh, Shahnawaz Alam and Shamim Ahmed.
Meanwhile, Nitish Kumar retained ministers from his party which includes, Mohd Zama Khan, Jayant Raj, Sheela Kumari, Sunil Kumar, Sanjay Jha, Madan Sahni, Shravan Kumar, Ashok Choudhary, Leshi Singh, Vijay Kumar Chaudhary and Bijendra Yadav.
Moreover, two Congress legislators, Afaque Alam and Murari Lal Gautam, one from Jitin Ram Manjhi’s Hindustani Awam Morcha, Santosh Suman and Sumit Kumar Singh, Independent MLA took oath as the cabinet ministers.
The list Bihar cabinet ministers’ portfolio was also released and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar keeps General Administration Department, Home Department, Cabinet Secretariat Department, Vigilance Department while Deputy CM Tejashwi Prasad Yadav keeps Health Department, Road Construction Department, Urban Development and Housing Department, Rural Works Department including others.
Earlier, on August 10, Kumar took oath as Chief Minister for a record eighth time after he resigned from the post and quitted the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav also took oath as Deputy Chief Minister.
A floor test will be held to demonstrate the Mahagathbandhan government’s majority in the Bihar Assembly on August 24.