Nitish Kumar-led grand alliance government in Bihar will be expanded today with the biggest chunk of seats going to alliance partner Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). Governor Phagu Chauhan will administer the oath of new ministers at Rajbhawan in Patna. The grand alliance government has the support of 164 MLAs comprising RJD, JD( U), Congress, left parties Hindustani Awam Morcha and one independent candidate.
About 30 members will be inducted into the cabinet today from various parties that are part of Mahagathbandhan or the Grand Alliance, including the Congress. The ceremony will be held around 11.30 am at the Raj Bhavan.
Nitish Kumar is likely to retain all ministers including Vijay Kumar Chaudhary, Ashok Choudhary, Sanjay Jha, Madan Sahni, Jayant Raj, Sheela Mandal, Bijendra Yadav, Shravan Kumar, Sunil Kumar, Jama Khan and Leshi Singh.
The Bihar cabinet can have up to 36 ministers, including the Chief Minister. Some ministerial berths will be kept vacant for future cabinet expansion, sources said.