How A Missed Navy Interview Changed Nitish Kumar’s Life & and Bihar’s Politics

Nitish

Kumar, who was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Bihar for a record 10th time in Patna, once had a very different dream -- he wanted to join the Indian Navy. As an engineering student at Patna Engineering College, he cleared the first round of recruitment and came close to wearing the Navy uniform, only to be rejected in the final interview. That setback, rooted largely in his then-limited command over English, stayed with him for years.

Cleared The First Round - But What Went Wrong In The Final?

According to his classmate Arun Kumar Sinha, as quoted in Uday Kant’s book “Nitish Kumar: Antrang Doston Ki Nazar Se”, Nitish and he were among the only two students selected in the initial screening. They were given second-class travel warrants -- a big deal in those days -- to appear for the final interview in Roorkee. But when questioned in English, both struggled to answer. The Navy officers couldn’t understand their “Bihari-style English,” said Sinha. Also Read |Nitish 10.0: Cabinet Line-Up As ‘Sushashan Babu’ Begins His 10th Innings

A Regret That Stayed

Nitish has openly carried a lingering regret from his school days: missing out on learning English from headmaster Tulsi Das Mukherjee. Known for teaching English through immersive conversations with students on daily walks, Mukherjee had already retired by the time Nitish entered high school.

How Nitish Built His Own English

Determined to overcome the gap, Nitish spent his college years reading English newspapers, political theory and even Marx and Engels theory with a dictionary by his side. Over time, he developed a strong grasp of the language. Today, he is known for catching even the smallest grammatical errors in official drafts.

Nitish Kumar Sworn-in As Bihar CM for 10th time

Nitish Kumar, JD(U) chief, was sworn in as Bihar’s Chief Minister for a record tenth time on Thursday, November 20, at Gandhi Maidan in Patna, capping the NDA’s victory in the state assembly polls. BJP leaders Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha took oath as ministers alongside him, underscoring the BJP’s hold on the key posts in the new NDA government. Under the new cabinet formula, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been allocated 15 ministerial berths (including the post of the Speaker which is expected to go to senior leader Prem Kumar), the JDU gets 13 (including Nitish Kumar as CM), while LJP (Ram Vilas), HAM (Secular) and Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) will be assigned two, one and one ministerial slots respectively. Portfolios and a full cabinet list will be announced by the parties shortly after the ceremony.