Honestly, if you've been following Indian politics for more than a week, you know the name. Nitish Kumar is basically the Houdini of Patna. He’s the man who somehow manages to stay in the driver's seat of Bihar while the world around him undergoes a dozen political seismic shifts. People call him "Sushasan Babu" when they like his roads and "Paltu Ram" when they’re annoyed by his alliance hopping. But here we are in January 2026, and he’s still the one calling the shots.
It’s wild.
Most leaders would have been buried by the sheer weight of anti-incumbency by now. Instead, Nitish Kumar led the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) to a massive landslide victory in the late 2025 assembly elections. We’re talking about a coalition crossing the 200-seat mark in a 243-member house. Most people thought he was done. They were wrong.
The 10th Oath and the Legend of the Survivor
On November 20, 2025, Nitish Kumar took the oath of office as the Bihar Chief Minister for a record-breaking tenth time. Ten times. Let that sink in for a second. While other politicians struggle to finish a single five-year term, Nitish has turned the oath-taking ceremony into a biennial tradition.
The 2025 win wasn't just luck.
He played the "women card" better than anyone else. His Mahila Rozgar Yojna, which funneled about ₹10,000 to over 1.25 crore women in the months leading up to the vote, turned out to be a masterstroke. In the dusty lanes of Rohtas and the flood-plains of Madhubani, it wasn't the high-level debates about secularism that moved the needle. It was the cash in hand. It was the Jeevika self-help groups. It was the feeling that "Nitish listens to us."
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What Most People Get Wrong About His Alliances
You’ll hear the critics go on and on about his "U-turns."
- 2013: Breaks with BJP over Modi.
- 2015: Joins Lalu’s RJD to win.
- 2017: Dumps RJD, goes back to BJP.
- 2022: Dumps BJP, goes back to RJD.
- 2024: Dumps RJD, joins BJP again.
It looks messy. Chaotic even. But if you look closer, there’s a cold, hard logic behind it. Nitish Kumar isn't just switching sides for the sake of a chair; he’s obsessed with maintaining his own agency. He knows that in a state like Bihar, where caste is the bedrock of every decision, his Kurmi-Koeri base (the Luv-Kush equation) isn't big enough to win alone. He needs a big brother. But the moment that big brother—be it the BJP or the RJD—tries to swallow his party, the Janata Dal (United), he jumps ship.
It's survival as an art form.
The Real Bihar: Infrastructure vs. Reality
If you drive through Bihar today, you aren't dodging the same potholes you were in 2004. That’s the Nitish legacy. He fixed the roads. He brought the "Jungle Raj" era of kidnappings under control. But—and this is a big "but"—the state is still struggling.
Unemployment is the ghost that haunts every rally.
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During the Samriddhi Yatra he’s launching this month (January 16, 2026), he’s going to face some tough questions. Why are the youth still migrating to Delhi and Punjab for minimum wage jobs? Why is the industrial growth still so sluggish? He’s promised four lakh jobs, but people have heard promises before.
Why the EBCs are his Secret Weapon
While the media focuses on the Yadavs and the Upper Castes, Nitish built his kingdom on the Extremely Backward Classes (EBCs). These are the groups that felt ignored by both the Congress and the RJD for decades. By carving out a specific identity for them, Kumar created a "silent vote bank." These voters don't shout at rallies. They don't trend on X (formerly Twitter). They just show up on election day and press the arrow symbol.
The Road Ahead in 2026
Is this the final act? Probably not. Nitish Kumar is currently on his Samriddhi Yatra, touring districts like West Champaran to see if his schemes are actually working. He knows the ground is shifting. New players like Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj are trying to eat into his base by talking about "systemic change."
But dismissing Nitish is a dangerous game.
He’s survived the Vajpayee era, the Manmohan years, and the Modi wave. He’s seen off rivals who were supposedly more charismatic. Honestly, his greatest strength is that he's a technocrat dressed as a socialist. He thinks in terms of files, cycles for schoolgirls, and alcohol bans.
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Actionable Insights for Following Bihar Politics
If you want to understand where Bihar is headed under Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, watch these three things:
- The Women's Vote: Keep an eye on the implementation of the Mahila Rozgar Yojna. If the cash flow stops, so does the loyalty.
- The BJP Balance: Watch how much space the BJP takes in the cabinet. If they push too hard for the CM seat, expect another "inner voice" moment from Nitish.
- The Samriddhi Yatra Results: The feedback he gets from this tour will dictate the state budget in February.
Nitish Kumar remains the center of gravity in Patna. You don't have to like his politics to respect the longevity. In a country where political careers often have the shelf life of a carton of milk, he’s managed to remain the indispensable man of Bihar for two decades.
To keep track of his progress, follow the official updates from the Bihar Cabinet Secretariat or the live reports from his ongoing Samriddhi Yatra across the districts. Monitoring the job creation statistics released by the state's Department of Labour Resources will also provide the clearest picture of whether his 2026 goals are being met.
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