‘Ekdum karega’: Nitish says Tejashwi will lead Mahagathbandan in 2025 polls, BJP scoffs

Kumar made the comment at a meeting of the ruling coalition’s legislators on the first day of the Bihar Assembly’s Winter Session. The CM also reiterated that he was not in the prime ministerial race and said all Opposition parties should come together to defeat the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

“2025 ka Vidhan Sabha ka chunav Tejashwi ji ke netritva mein lada jaayega. Main pradhanmatri pad ka ummeedwar nahi hoon. Hum sab chahte hai sabhi vipakshi parties ek saath aakar BJP ko 2024 ke chunav me hataye (The 2025 Assembly elections will be fought under the leadership of Tejashwi ji. I am not in the PM race. We want all Opposition parties to come together and defeat the BJP in the 2024 polls).”

Later, when reporters asked if he indeed meant when he said Tejashwi would lead the Mahagathbandan in 2025, Nitish reiterated, “Ekdum karega (He will surely lead).”

State Finance Minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary of the Janata Dal (United) told reporters after the meeting, “There is no surprise in what the CM said. He had been talking about Tejashwi being the future of Bihar. He said this in Nalanda on Monday and reiterated this on Tuesday.”

RJD national vice president and former MP Shivanand Tiwari told The Indian Express, “This is precisely what I said at a meeting of the RJD national council. Now that Nitish Kumar announced the CM candidature of Tejashwi Prasad, it has given great clarity to our politics.”

Tiwari added, “Nitish said three things. That he is not in the PM race, the Opposition should come together, and Tejashwi should lead. All these things are interlinked. If RJD and JD (U) workers strike up good coordination and try to win a maximum of 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar, it can stop the BJP’s return to power in 2024.”

RJD national spokesperson Subodh Kumar called Nitish’s announcement a “welcome step” while several MLAs of the party said it would further embolden the party.

Casting doubts, BJP spokesperson Nikhil Anand said the CM’s statement was just another calculated move. “Knowing and seeing Nitish Kumar’s political moves all these years, the statement regarding projecting Tejashwi in 2025 polls looks like a political ploy. A leader like Nitish can never live without power.”