Chief Ministers of Bihar
24 people have held the office, across 35 terms, from formation to today.
Every Chief Minister
Most recent first, with a short biography where one is available.
Samrat Choudhary
Incumbent15 Apr 2026 – present · 4 months
Samrat Choudhary (born 16 November 1968) is an Indian politician who is serving as the 24th Chief Minister of Bihar since 15 April 2026. He has been a member of the Bihar Legislative Assembly representing Tarapur Assembly constituency since 2025 and previously served as deputy chief minister of Bihar in the Nitish Kumar government from 2024 to 2026. Choudhary is the first Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member to serve as Chief Minister of Bihar. Wikipedia →
Jitan Ram Manjhi
20 May 2014 – 22 Feb 2015 · 9 months
Jitan Ram Manjhi (born 6 October 1944) is an Indian politician who is serving as the 15th Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises since 2024. He is currently a Member of Parliament from Gaya constituency and was Bihar's 23rd Chief Minister from 20 May 2014 to 20 February 2015. He was the founding President of Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM). Wikipedia →
Nitish Kumar
3 Mar 2000 – 15 Apr 2026 · 19 years, 7 months · 3 terms
Nitish Kumar (born 1 March 1951) is an Indian politician from Bihar. He is currently serving as a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha. The national president of the Janata Dal (United), he was the longest serving Chief Minister of Bihar, serving briefly in 2000, from 2005 to 2014, and again from 2015 to 2026. Wikipedia →
25 Jul 1997 – 7 Mar 2005 · 7 years, 6 months · 3 terms
Rabri Devi (Devanagri: राबड़ी देवी, IAST: rābar̤ī devī Sanskrit pronunciation: [ɾɑːbəɽiː d̪eːʋiː]) is an Indian politician who currently serves as the leader of the opposition in the Bihar Legislative Council. She served as the chief minister of Bihar almost continuously between 1997 to 2005; she is the first and only woman till date to have held the office. She is also served as leader of the house in legislative assembly). Wikipedia →
Lalu Prasad Yadav
10 Mar 1990 – 25 Jul 1997 · 7 years, 4 months · 3 terms
Lalu Prasad Yadav (born 11 June 1948) is an Indian politician who served as the chief minister of Bihar from 1990 to 1997, with a brief interruption in 1995, and as the union minister for Railways from 2004 to 2009. He is the founding president of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), a prominent political party in Bihar. He is also a former member of Parliament (MP) of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. Wikipedia →
11 Mar 1989 – 6 Dec 1989 · 8 months
Satyendra Narayan Sinha (12 July 1917 – 4 September 2006) was an Indian politician and statesman, participant in the Indian independence movement, a leading light of Jaya Prakash Narayan's ‘complete revolution’ movement during the Emergency and a former Chief Minister of Bihar. Affectionately called Chhote Saheb, he was also a seven-time Member of Parliament from the Aurangabad constituency, a three-term Member of the Bihar Legislative Assembly, and a Member of the Bihar Legislative Council once. Regarded to be one of India's most influential regional people of the time, his reputation was synonymous with being a strict disciplinarian and tough taskmaster. Wikipedia →
13 Feb 1988 – 10 Mar 1989 · 1 year
Bhagwat Jha Azad (28 November 1922 – 4 October 2010) was an Indian independence activist and politician who was Chief Minister of Bihar from 14 February 1988 to 10 March 1989. He was at various times a member of parliament and a member of the Bihar state legislature. Wikipedia →
12 Mar 1985 – 13 Feb 1988 · 2 years, 11 months
Bindeshwari Dubey (14 January 1921 – 20 January 1993) was an Indian independence activist, trade unionist and politician who served as Chief Minister of Bihar between 12 March 1985 and 13 February 1988. Dubey was involved in the nationalisation of Indian collieries, especially in the Chhotanagpur region that was then a part of Bihar (now Jharkhand). He held the portfolios of Law, Justice and Labour in the Union Council of Ministers in Rajiv Gandhi's cabinet. Wikipedia →
14 Aug 1983 – 12 Mar 1985 · 1 year, 6 months
Chandrashekhar Singh (17 August 1927 – 9 July 1986) was a member of the Indian National Congress and served as the 16th Chief Minister of Bihar from August 1983 to March 1985. He also held a number of Union State Minister positions in the Ministry of Prime Ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi. He was elected to Bihar Vidhan Sabha four times, and also to the Parliament a few times. Wikipedia →
21 Apr 1979 – 17 Feb 1980 · 9 months
Ram Sundar Das (9 January 1921 – 6 March 2015) was an Indian freedom fighter, politician and former Chief Minister of Bihar state. He was a two-time Member of Parliament from Hajipur constituency. Wikipedia →
Jagannath Mishra
11 Apr 1975 – 10 Mar 1990 · 5 years, 5 months · 3 terms
Jagannath Mishra (24 June 1937 – 19 August 2019) was an Indian politician who served as Chief Minister of Bihar and as Minister in the Union Cabinet. He was also Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha between 1988 - 1990 and 1994 - 2000. His involvement was at a high level in the Indian National Congress. Wikipedia →
Abdul Ghafoor
2 Jul 1973 – 11 Apr 1975 · 1 year, 9 months
Abdul Ghafoor (18 March 1918 – 10 July 2004) was an Indian independence activist and politician who served as the 13th Chief Minister of Bihar from 2 July 1973 to 11 April 1975; and served as cabinet minister in Rajiv Gandhi's government. He participated actively in freedom struggles and served jail terms. He is also the only Muslim Chief Minister of Bihar since 1947. Wikipedia →
Kedar Pandey
19 Mar 1972 – 2 Jul 1973 · 1 year, 3 months
Kedar Pandey (14 June 1920 – 3 July 1982) was an Indian independence activist and Indian National Congress politician who served as the Chief Minister of Bihar from March 1972 to 2 July 1973 and Minister of Railways in the Union Cabinet from 12 November 1980 to 14 January 1982 in the Government of India. Wikipedia →
Karpoori Thakur
22 Dec 1970 – 21 Apr 1979 · 2 years, 3 months · 2 terms
Karpoori Thakur (24 January 1924 – 17 February 1988) was an Indian politician who twice served as the 11th Chief Minister of Bihar, first from December 1970 to June 1971, and then from June 1977 to April 1979. He was popularly known as Jan Nayak (transl. people's leader). On 26 January 2024, he was posthumously awarded India's highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna, by the Government of India. Wikipedia →
16 Feb 1970 – 22 Dec 1970 · 10 months
Daroga Prasad Rai (2 September 1922 – 15 April 1981) was an Indian politician from the state of Bihar. He was the Chief Minister of Bihar in 1970 for ten months, but Congress was reduced to a minority in December 1970 and Karpoori Thakur became the first socialist Chief Minister for a few months, with Jana Sangh support. From 2 July 1973 to 11 April 1975, he was the Deputy Chief Minister and in charge of finance in Abdul Gafoor's ministry. Wikipedia →
Harihar Singh
26 Feb 1969 – 22 Jun 1969 · 3 months
Harihar Singh also known as Bihari Ji Singh (1925–1994) was an Indian politician and a former Chief Minister of Bihar. He succeeded Bhola Paswan Shashtri, as the Chief Minister of Bihar in 1969. Harihar Singh's tenure as Chief Minister lasted just a few months – he led an INC-led coalition government and all six members of Soshit Dal, a constituent party of the coalition, defected to the Opposition during a budget session of the Bihar Assembly. Wikipedia →
Bhola Paswan Shastri
22 Mar 1968 – 9 Jan 1972 · 10 months · 3 terms
Bhola Paswan Shastri (21 September 1914 – 10 September 1984) was an Indian independence activist and politician who thrice served as Chief Minister of Bihar between 1968 and 1982. He was the first individual from the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes to be Chief Minister of Bihar, and the second person from the SC community overall to be a state Chief Minister after Andhra Pradesh's Damodaram Sanjivayya. To honour him, Bhola Paswan Shastri College, Babhangama, Bihariganj, Madhepura is named after him. Wikipedia →
1 Feb 1968 – 22 Mar 1968 · 1 month
Babu Bindheshwari Prasad Mandal (25 August 1918 – 13 April 1982) was a scion of the erstwhile Murho Estate and an Indian politician who chaired the Mandal Commission. Mandal came from a rich Yadav landlord family from Madhepura in Northern Bihar. He served as the seventh Chief Minister of Bihar in 1968, but he resigned after 30 days. Wikipedia →
Satish Prasad Singh
28 Jan 1968 – 1 Feb 1968 · 4 days
Satish Prasad Singh (1 January 1936 – 2 November 2020) was an Indian politician. He was the Chief Minister of Bihar for a very brief tenure of just four days in 1968. Wikipedia →
5 Mar 1967 – 28 Jan 1968 · 10 months
Mahamaya Prasad Sinha (1 May 1909 – 1987) was an Indian politician. He was the fifth Chief Minister of Bihar from March 1967 to January 1968 which was the first non congress Government in Bihar. Sinha was a follower of Maharaja Kamakhya Narain Singh and Maharaj Kumar Basant Narain Singh and was a member of their political Jan Kranti Dal. Wikipedia →
2 Oct 1963 – 5 Mar 1967 · 3 years, 5 months
Krishna Ballabh Sahay (31 December 1898 – 3 June 1974) was an Indian independence activist and politician who served as the fourth Chief Minister of Bihar. Wikipedia →
18 Feb 1961 – 2 Oct 1963 · 2 years, 7 months
Binodanand Jha (17 April 1900 – 1971), also known as Pandit Binodanand Jha, was an Indian politician originally from the district of Deoghar, Bihar (Baidyanathdham Deoghar), now in Jharkhand. He was educated at the Central Calcutta College, (now Maulana Azad College) of the University of Calcutta. He was the Chief Minister of Bihar from February 1961 to October 1963. Wikipedia →
Deep Narayan Singh
1 Feb 1961 – 18 Feb 1961 · 17 days
Deep Narayan Singh (25 November 1894 – 7 December 1977) was an Indian politician, participant in the Indian independence movement, and a former Chief Minister of Bihar. Born in Purantand, Bihar, Singh was a Member of the Constituent Assembly of India which was elected to write the Constitution of India. He also served as part of India's first Parliament as an independent nation and was a Member of the Bihar Legislative Assembly. Wikipedia →
Shri Krishna Sinha
15 Aug 1947 – 31 Jan 1961 · 13 years, 5 months
Shri Krishna Singh (Sinha) (21 October 1887 – 31 January 1961), also known as Shri Babu, was the first chief minister of the Indian state of Bihar (1946–61). Except for the period of World War II, Sinha was the chief minister of Bihar from the time of the first Congress Ministry in 1937 until his death in 1961. He led the Dalit entry into the Baidyanath Dham, Deoghar. Wikipedia →
Full timeline
Every term and every President's or Governor's Rule interval, most recent first.
| 15 Apr 2026 – present | Samrat Choudhary | BJP | 4 months |
| 22 Feb 2015 – 15 Apr 2026 | Nitish Kumar | JDU | 11 years, 1 month |
| 20 May 2014 – 22 Feb 2015 | Jitan Ram Manjhi | JDU | 9 months |
| 24 Nov 2005 – 20 May 2014 | Nitish Kumar | JDU | 8 years, 5 months |
| 7 Mar 2005 – 24 Nov 2005 | President's / Governor's Rule — President's Rule after the hung February 2005 assembly election | 8 months | |
| 11 Mar 2000 – 7 Mar 2005 | Rabri Devi | RJD | 4 years, 11 months |
| 3 Mar 2000 – 11 Mar 2000 | Nitish Kumar | SAP | 8 days |
| 9 Mar 1999 – 2 Mar 2000 | Rabri Devi | RJD | 11 months |
| 12 Feb 1999 – 9 Mar 1999 | President's / Governor's Rule — President's Rule | 25 days | |
| 25 Jul 1997 – 11 Feb 1999 | Rabri Devi | RJD | 1 year, 6 months |
| 5 Jul 1997 – 25 Jul 1997 | Lalu Prasad Yadav | RJD | 20 days |
| 4 Apr 1995 – 5 Jul 1997 | Lalu Prasad Yadav | JD | 2 years, 3 months |
| 28 Mar 1995 – 4 Apr 1995 | President's / Governor's Rule — President's Rule after the 1995 assembly election, pending government formation | 7 days | |
| 10 Mar 1990 – 28 Mar 1995 | Lalu Prasad Yadav | JD | 5 years |
| 6 Dec 1989 – 10 Mar 1990 | Jagannath Mishra | INC | 3 months |
| 11 Mar 1989 – 6 Dec 1989 | Satyendra Narayan Sinha | INC | 8 months |
| 13 Feb 1988 – 10 Mar 1989 | Bhagwat Jha Azad | INC | 1 year |
| 12 Mar 1985 – 13 Feb 1988 | Bindeshwari Dubey | INC | 2 years, 11 months |
| 14 Aug 1983 – 12 Mar 1985 | Chandrashekhar Singh | INC | 1 year, 6 months |
| 8 Jun 1980 – 14 Aug 1983 | Jagannath Mishra | INCI | 3 years, 2 months |
| 17 Feb 1980 – 8 Jun 1980 | President's / Governor's Rule — President's Rule | 3 months | |
| 21 Apr 1979 – 17 Feb 1980 | Ram Sundar Das | JNP | 9 months |
| 24 Jun 1977 – 21 Apr 1979 | Karpoori Thakur | JNP | 1 year, 9 months |
| 30 Apr 1977 – 24 Jun 1977 | President's / Governor's Rule — President's Rule | 1 month | |
| 11 Apr 1975 – 30 Apr 1977 | Jagannath Mishra | INC | 2 years |
| 2 Jul 1973 – 11 Apr 1975 | Abdul Ghafoor | INC | 1 year, 9 months |
| 19 Mar 1972 – 2 Jul 1973 | Kedar Pandey | INCR | 1 year, 3 months |
| 9 Jan 1972 – 19 Mar 1972 | President's / Governor's Rule — President's Rule | 2 months | |
| 2 Jun 1971 – 9 Jan 1972 | Bhola Paswan Shastri | INCR | 7 months |
| 22 Dec 1970 – 2 Jun 1971 | Karpoori Thakur | SOCP | 5 months |
| 16 Feb 1970 – 22 Dec 1970 | Daroga Prasad Rai | INCR | 10 months |
| 4 Jul 1969 – 16 Feb 1970 | President's / Governor's Rule — President's Rule | 7 months | |
| 22 Jun 1969 – 4 Jul 1969 | Bhola Paswan Shastri | INCO | 12 days |
| 26 Feb 1969 – 22 Jun 1969 | Harihar Singh | INC | 3 months |
| 29 Jun 1968 – 26 Feb 1969 | President's / Governor's Rule — President's Rule | 7 months | |
| 22 Mar 1968 – 28 Jun 1968 | Bhola Paswan Shastri | INC | 3 months |
| 1 Feb 1968 – 22 Mar 1968 | B. P. Mandal | SHD | 1 month |
| 28 Jan 1968 – 1 Feb 1968 | Satish Prasad Singh | SHD | 4 days |
| 5 Mar 1967 – 28 Jan 1968 | Mahamaya Prasad Sinha | JKD | 10 months |
| 2 Oct 1963 – 5 Mar 1967 | Krishna Ballabh Sahay | INC | 3 years, 5 months |
| 18 Feb 1961 – 2 Oct 1963 | Binodanand Jha | INC | 2 years, 7 months |
| 1 Feb 1961 – 18 Feb 1961 | Deep Narayan Singh | INC | 17 days |
| 15 Aug 1947 – 31 Jan 1961 | Shri Krishna Sinha | INC | 13 years, 5 months |
Nitish Kumar's continuous 2015-2026 tenure (JD(U)) survived multiple coalition realignments (2017 switch back to NDA, 2022 switch to Mahagathbandhan, 2024 switch back to NDA) without any actual CM change or gap, so is kept as one row per Wikipedia's main CM-list convention. Nitish Kumar resigned in April 2026 after the NDA's landslide in the November 2025 Bihar election, with BJP's Samrat Choudhary becoming Bihar's first BJP Chief Minister on 15 April 2026 (24th CM).