Nitish Kumar to leave CM post

Nitish Kumar, the chief minister of India’s eastern state of Bihar, has said he will step down from his post to become a member of the federal parliament.

Kumar, 75, said in a post on X that the new government in the state “will have his full cooperation and guidance”.

His decision paves the way for a new chief minister, who can be from Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) party or his coalition partner Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

This decision marks a pause for Kumar’s political career in the state where he was chief minister for most parts of the last two decades.