Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is set to expand his cabinet tomorrow. His alliance partner Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) is getting a big chunk of the seats.
The RJD will have 16 cabinet seats and Kumar's Janata Dal-United (JD-U) 11, reported NDTV. Two legislators from the Congress and one from Jitin Ram Manjhi's HAM (Hindustani Awam Morcha) and one Independent member will also take the oath.
The cabinet will have a maximum number of 36 ministers. CM Nitish Kumar and his deputy RJD's Tejashwi Yadav took oath on August 10. Tomorrow's ceremony will be held around 11.30 am at the Raj Bhavan.
According to sources, Kumar is likely to retain all ministers except one from his previous cabinet. RJD is likely to name a new set of ministers, covering all castes and staying true to its new A to Z slogan. It is unclear which party will be handling home, finance, taxes, and Road construction. Some speculate that Tejashwi Yadav is likely to get health, finance, and road construction, which was part of the BJP's share.
Nitish Kumar broke his alliance with BJP earlier this month citing that BJP was not returning the support JD-U offered them. He then formed a government with RJD, Congress, and other parties. The new alliance is expected to prove majority on the floor of the assembly next week.
Some suspect that the BJP was attempting a repeat of the Maharashtra model rebellion in Bihar.