PATNA: Ratnesh Sada, the Janata Dal-United MLA from the Sonbarsa assembly seat, on Friday took oath as a minister in Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's cabinet. The oath of office and secrecy was administered to Sada by Bihar Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar at the Raj Bhavan here. Sada is a three-time MLA from the Sonbarsa (SC) seat. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav and several other dignitaries were present at the swearing-in ceremony. Santosh Kumar Suman, the son of former CM and Hindustani Awam Morcha HAM(S) founder Jitan Ram Manjhi, had recently quit the Nitish Kumar cabinet paving the way for Sada's induction.


Who Is Ratnesh Sada?


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Ratnesh Sada, who represents the Sonbarsa assembly constituency, is a Dalit leader and belongs to the Musahar community like former Bihar chief minister and HAM chief Jitan Ram Manjhi. In what is being seen as a masterstroke by the Bihar Chief Minister, Sada may also be given the SC and ST welfare portfolio, which was earlier held by Santosh Suman. Suman resigned recently alleging "pressure" from the JD-U to merge his party Hindustani Awam Morcha with the ruling party. Sada, the three-time legislator from JD-U is associated with the Kabirpanthi sect.


 


Early Life


 


 


Ratnesh Sada has faced a lot of hardship and struggle in his life. Before making his foray into politics, Sada used to drive a rickshaw for his living. According to media reports, Ratnesh Sada is a resident of Simar village of the Mahishi police station area. His family resides in Ward No. 6 located in Kahra Kuti of Sonbarsa. His father Lakshmi worked as a contract labourer. According to the affidavit filed in the Election Commission, Ratnesh Sada is a graduate. MLA Ratnesh Sada has three sons and two daughters.


Political Career


 


Ratnesh Sada’s political career set off in 1987. However, he became an MLA from the Sonbarsa reserved seat from the JDU quota in 2010. He has won thrice in a row. He is also the president of JDU’s Mahadalit Cell. He has also held other key positions in the party including JDU vice president. MLA Ratnesh Sada is the president of JDU Mahadalit Cell. Sada won the 2020 assembly election from the Sonbarsa reserve seat, defeating Tarni Rishidev of the Congress. He is at present the whip of the JD-U and is considered very close to Bihar CM Nitish Kumar.  His total declared movable and immovable assets are worth 1.30 crores and has no criminal case registered against him. 


Masterstroke By Nitish Kumar


 


The elevation of Ratnesh Sada, who hails from the populous north Bihar, is being seen as a masterstroke by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who is looking to neutralise the damage Jitan Ram Manjhi could inflict, especially if he returned to the BJP-led NDA ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha election.


The Sonbarsha MLA has also accused the father-son duo of HAM of having ditched Nitish Kumar because of their "insatiable greed and vaulting ambition". Sada also charged Manjhi with "paying lip service to Dalits, especially Musahars despite being a minister in several governments since 1980s besides a brief tenure as the CM."


 


Bihar Cabinet Expansion


 


A Cabinet expansion has been due for a long time after JD(U) snapped its ties with BJP to form Mahagathbandhan (grand alliance) government in August 2022. Presently, there are 30 ministers in the Bihar Cabinet following the resignation of Suman. Based on the total strength of the Assembly, there can be a maximum of 36 ministers. The Mahagathbandhan has 164 MLAs in the 243-seat Bihar assembly. The RJD has 16 ministers, JD(U) has 11 and Congress has two in the Cabinet. There is also one independent member. While Santosh Suman is a member of the legislative council, HAM has a total of four MLAs in the assembly.