Nitish Kumar Takes Oath Again as Bihar Polls Fuel SIR Debate
Nitish Kumar Takes Oath Again as Bihar Polls Fuel SIR Debate
Bihar's NDA wins a clear majority as Nitish Kumar is sworn in for a 10th term, amid a heated clash over voter list purification and infiltrator claims.
Bihar’s NDA returned to power as Nitish Kumar was sworn in for the tenth time as chief minister after the alliance clinched a 202-seat majority in the 243-seat assembly. At 74, Kumar has spent about 18 years as chief minister across nine terms, making him the longest-serving CM in Bihar's history, though other states have seen longer tenures.
Beyond the numbers, the election season was dominated by the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision, or SIR, which purged and added millions of voters. Supporters call it a necessary purification to curb infiltrators; critics say it disenfranchises legitimate voters. Kumar’s oath comes as the debate over SIR’s impact continues, with the home minister framing it as a democratic safeguard and opponents warning of disenfranchisement ahead of future polls.
Official data show that the SIR deletions were substantial: about 68 lakh voters deleted and 24 lakh added, a net reduction of around 44 lakh. Despite the scale of the revision, the NDA’s vote share in the Bihar assembly was about 46.6 percent, roughly 1.4 percentage points lower than in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, while the Mahagatbandan's share fell by about 2.2 points. Analysts say the result reflects continuity rather than a turnaround sparked by the roll purge.
Supporters of the NDA argued that the victory signals the public's backing for strong security measures and governance, while opponents warned about potential disenfranchisement and political manipulation around the SIR process. Observers note that legal and political debates around voter list updates are likely to shape Bihar’s political discourse as parties prepare for next year’s elections.
Either way, Bihar’s politics remains deeply transactional and relentlessly dynamic, with the oath marking another chapter in Kumar’s long career and the SIR controversy illuminating the tension between security, democracy, and electoral fairness.
Cover image source: Bihar’s Nitish Kumar and other Chief Ministers with most years in office: Infographics 🔗
