After assuming charge of the Home Ministry on Saturday, Bihar’s Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary reassured the people of the state that the new government would continue to strengthen good governance in Bihar.

He said, “Nitish Kumar has consistently established good governance. Going forward too, the entire system of good governance will function under his guidance and leadership.”

Choudhary added, “There is good governance in Bihar. A system has been built here. This system has ended anarchy and jungle raj, and it will be fully enforced. But one thing is certain, Bihar is not a place for criminals. Criminals will have to leave Bihar.”

Meanwhile, a new debate has emerged in political circles after BJP media panelist Niraj Kumar compared Bihar’s governance under Samrat Choudhary to the Yogi Adityanath model in Uttar Pradesh. In a social media post, he wrote that “a new chapter has been written on Bihar’s political threshold.”

He noted that a joint operation by the police and the STF in Begusarai on Friday sent a strong message to criminals. In the Sahebpur Kamal police station area, bullets were fired at the notorious criminal Shivdutt Rai, who was injured and subsequently arrested.

“This encounter is a living example of Yogi Adityanath’s style, where the resolve to crush crime with an iron hand of the law is clearly visible. The second encounter in two days has demonstrated the determination of the Bihar Police,” he wrote.

Niraj further stated that under Samrat Choudhary’s leadership, criminals would now “feel a chill,” as a new dawn of peace and justice had begun in Bihar. “The people of the state believe that this new energy will help realise the dream of a crime-free Bihar. Criminals should beware, because the reins are now in strong hands.”

With rising crime in the previous term and criticism from the Opposition, law and order has become a top priority for the BJP. The party now intends to run the department directly in line with its own agenda. The challenge before Samrat Choudhary is how to balance Nitish Kumar’s governance model with the BJP’s tough image.

Nitish Kumar relinquishing the Home Department in 2025 adds a new chapter to Bihar’s political history, as only three other chief ministers have done so previously.

In 1967, in the Mahamaya Prasad Sinha government, the Home Department was held by Ramanand Tiwari. In 1971, during Karpoori Thakur’s tenure, the portfolio was again with Tiwari. In 1974, in Abdul Ghafoor’s government, the Chief Minister himself handled the Home Ministry, while Radhanandan Jha served as Minister of State for Home.