The BJP on Tuesday announced that Samrat Chaudhary will take over the reins of Bihar, succeeding Nitish Kumar. He is a senior leader of the party and currently serves as Deputy Prime Minister, and is expected to be sworn in on April 15 as Prime Minister.
Early life and political background
Samrat Chaudhary comes from a powerful political family in Bihar. His father, Shakuni Chaudhary, was a six-time MLA from Tarapur, while his mother Parvati Devi also worked as a legislator. This legacy gave him an early entry into politics.
He started his career in 1999 with the Rashtriya Janata Dal and quickly rose through the ranks. In 2000, he was elected MLA from Parbhata in Khagaria and became a minister in the Rabri Devi-led government.
A political journey across parties
Chaudhry’s career has been shaped by major political shifts. After years in the RJD, he joined the Janata Dal (United) in 2014 and served as a minister in the government headed by Jitan Ram Manjhi.
In 2017, he moved to the Bharatiya Janata Party, where his rise was meteoric. He held organizational roles like state vice president and later became president of the party’s Bihar unit in 2023. In January 2024, he was appointed deputy chief minister in the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government.
Role in Bihar politics
Samrat Chaudhary is one of the prominent faces of the BJP in Bihar, a state where caste dynamics play a crucial role in electoral politics. As a key strategist and activist, he played a central role in expanding and organizing the party.
He also maintained a strong presence in constituencies such as Tarapur, his family’s traditional stronghold, which strengthened his popular political base.
Disagreements
His political career was not without controversy. Opposition leaders accused him of discrepancies in election affidavits relating to his age and called for an investigation.
He also faced allegations linked to a 1995 murder case, in which he was named alongside his father. These issues still arise in political debates, although he remains an important figure in Bihar politics.
