Nitish to take oath at Gandhi Maidan on Thursday, Arif Mohammad eighth Governor to swear him in

The upcoming oath-taking ceremony — his 10th overall — will mark the fourth such event at the same ground.

Nitish Kumar’s swearing-in ceremony at Patna’s historic Gandhi Maidan on November 20, in the presence of dignitaries from across the country, will not be the first event of such scale. Of the four times he has taken oath after elections since 2005, three ceremonies have been held at Gandhi Maidan, a venue that has witnessed major political gatherings since the pre-Independence era.

Bihar’s CM-elect Nitish Kumar (left) with Governor Arif Mohammad Khan at Raj Bhawan in Patna on Monday. (Santosh Kumar/ HT Photo)

The upcoming oath-taking ceremony — his 10th overall — will mark the fourth such event at the same ground. Only in 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, was the ceremony held as a low-key affair at the Raj Bhawan.

Notably, eight Governors have administered the oath of office to Nitish Kumar over the past two and a half decades. VC Pande administered his first oath in 2000, while Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan will officiate on November 20, 2025. In the intervening years, Buta Singh, Devanand Konwar, Ram Nath Kovind, Keshri Nath Tripathi, Fagu Chauhan and Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar have each administered the oath at various times, with Tripathi and Chauhan doing so twice due to the frequent political realignments after 2015.

As Bihar’s longest-serving Chief Minister, Nitish Kumar has worked with six different Deputy Chief Ministers — five from the BJP and one from the RJD — since 2005. “Besides Prime Minister Narendra Modi, several Union ministers and chief ministers of NDA-ruled states will be present at the swearing-in to make it the grandest so far,” a senior BJP leader said, requesting anonymity.

Nitish Kumar first took oath as chief minister in 2000 as a Samata Party leader and Union minister in the PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee cabinet. However, his government lasted only seven days as he failed to secure a majority in the 324-member Assembly of undivided Bihar, which then included Jharkhand. He resigned ahead of the trust vote.

He returned to power in 2005 after leading the NDA to a decisive victory in the October–November elections. The swearing-in ceremony was held at Gandhi Maidan for the first time, with BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi taking oath as deputy chief minister alongside 26 ministers. The then Governor Buta Singh presided over the ceremony, seen as a major political shift after the NDA ousted the long-running RJD government. The event was attended by senior national leaders including then prime minister Vajpayee, BJP president LK Advani, Akali Dal leader Parkash Singh Badal, National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah, Madhya Pradesh chief minister Babulal Gaur and BJP leaders M Venkaiah Naidu, Uma Bharti and Arun Jaitley.

In 2010, the Nitish-led NDA government secured its biggest-ever mandate, winning 206 seats on the “development plank.” The oath ceremony on November 26, 2010 was again held at Gandhi Maidan, with Governor Devanand Konwar administering the oath to Nitish Kumar, Sushil Modi and 28 ministers. Among the attendees were BJP president Nitin Gadkari and senior leaders LK Advani, Arun Jaitley, Sushma Swaraj, Rajnath Singh, Anant Kumar and Shatrughan Sinha.

In 2015, Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) joined the Grand Alliance with the RJD, Congress and Left parties. The alliance won 178 seats, while the BJP was reduced to 53. The swearing-in ceremony on November 24, 2015, held at Gandhi Maidan, was conducted by Governor Ram Nath Kovind. Nitish Kumar took oath along with first-time MLA Tejashwi Prasad Yadav as deputy chief minister and 27 other ministers. The event was attended by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, former prime minister HD Deve Gowda, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury, CPI leader D Raja and Union minister M Venkaiah Naidu.

In contrast, the 2020 swearing-in was a subdued event due to the pandemic. The Grand Alliance boycotted the ceremony, though Union home minister Amit Shah and BJP president JP Nadda were present. Governor Fagu Chauhan administered the oath.

Gandhi Maidan has been the venue for other major political ceremonies as well. On March 10, 1990, Lalu Prasad Yadav was sworn in as Bihar’s 25th chief minister by Governor Mohammed Yunus Saleem at the same ground.

Former chief secretary VS Dube, who served in undivided Bihar and later in Jharkhand, said the practice of holding oath ceremonies at Gandhi Maidan is relatively recent but serves both political and public interests.

“I don’t recall if any other chief minister apart from Nitish Kumar or Lalu Prasad took oath at the Gandhi Maidan. There is nothing in the Constitution about the venue. It only states that the Governor should administer the oath, and usually this happens at the Raj Bhawan,” he said. “But entry there is restricted, and few people can attend. At Gandhi Maidan, it becomes a show of strength and publicity, and people take back the memory of having witnessed the ceremony.”