PATNA: In an unexpected turn of events, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar on Sunday chose his close confidante RCP Singh as the national president of the JD(U).
The bureaucrat-turned-politician, who belongs to the same caste and home district (Nalanda) as Nitish Kumar, has been working as the vice-president of the party and has always acted as the trouble-shooter for the chief minister.
Kumar had hinted at the Rajya Sabha MP's elevation in the party a few days ago when he was asked who will be his successor.
Sources from the party meeting said that CM Nitish Kumar has proposed the name of RCP Singh himself that was unanimously agreed upon by the party leaders.
Singh's elevation to this coveted position came soon after the defection of six MLAs in Arunachal Pradesh to BJP.
Meanwhile, a reliable party source said that Singh has been handed over the reign of the party at a time when the JDU has slipped to become the third-largest party with 43 seats from earlier the second largest party with 71 MLAs in 2015.
After Singh takes over his new roles, speculations are rife that Nitish will now pay full attention towards his governance after facing criticism over rise in crimes and other issues from the RJD-led Opposition.