Janata Dal (United) chief Nitish Kumar, who has started his Rajya Sabha term after a two-decade stint as Chief Minister, chaired his last Bihar cabinet meeting today. Kumar resigned this afternoon, paving the way for Bihar’s first Chief Minister from the BJP.

The mood was sombre in today’s cabinet meeting. Nitish Kumar, who took over as Chief Minister in 2005 after defeating the Lalu Prasad Yadav-led Rashtriya Janata Dal, delivered a six-minute-long farewell speech. He thanked his cabinet colleagues and said he tried to work to the best of his ability. Deputy Chief Ministers Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha thanked Kumar on behalf of the cabinet.

Ministers and Kumar’s party colleagues, Ashok Choudhary and Leshi Singh, broke down as the veteran leader spoke. After the meeting, Kumar spoke one-on-one with the ministers. Sources said he asked the same question to all of them. “Did I make the right decision?” he asked them about his move to the Rajya Sabha. While most said they do, some ministers flatly said they don’t accept this decision and added that they would miss him.

With Nitish Kumar resigning, MLAs of all NDA partners met and chose Samrat Choudhary as the next Chief Minister of Bihar. Choudhary is expected to meet the Governor today itself, and the swearing-in could take place tomorrow morning. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Nitin Nabin are among the top leaders likely to attend the oath ceremony. Two Deputy Chief Ministers are also likely to take the oath