Over 30 ministers were inducted into Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar's new Cabinet on Tuesday, 16 August, echoing Lalu Prasad Yadav’s Muslim-Yadav formula, with the additional inclusion of legislators from all sections of the society.
There are altogether seven Yadav legislators who have found a place in the Cabinet – six from Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), including the two sons of Lalu Prasad, and the seventh – Bijendra Yadav of the Janata Dal (United).
The Yadavs featured in the Cabinet are – Surendra Prasad Yadav (RJD), Lalit Yadav (RJD), Chandrashekhar (RJD), Ramanand Yadav (RJD), Jitendra Kumar Rai (RJD), and Bijendra Yadav (JDU), besides Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav.
The forming of the Mahagathbandhan government was expected to also bring together the RJD's Muslim-Yadav base, JD(U)'s support among Kurmis, MBCs and Mahadalits and the pockets of influence of Congress and CPI-ML, making it a formidable alliance.
Here's how Nitish Kumar has gone beyond the Muslim-Yadav formula.