Ayodhya (Uttar Pradesh): Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary took off his turban on Wednesday in Ayodhya and placed it in Lord Ram Temple in fulfillment of a vow regarding Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Mr Chaudhary took a dip in the Saryu river here and dedicated his turban in the Ram Temple after shaving off his head.
He made the offering of his turban to mark the fulfillment of the vow he had made regarding Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Speaking to reporters, Mr Choudhary who is also the BJP state president said, "I took a dip in the Saryu river. I will devote this turban that I had for the last 22 months to Lord Ram."
The State BJP Chief also offered prayers at the Hanuman Garhi temple in Ayodhya.
Recalling his vow, Mr Choudhary on Tuesday said that it is time for him to remove his turban and offer it at the feet of Lord Ram.
The BJP leader had started sporting a turban after Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar jumped ship to the Mahagathbandhan in 2022 after ditching the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Mr Choudhary had vowed that he would take off his turban only after "dethroning" Nitish Kumar.
"True that I had pledged to wear the turban until I made Nitish Kumar resign as the Chief Minister. But now that he has switched back to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) after resigning as the Chief Minister of the INDI Alliance, it is time for me to dedicate this turban to the feet of Lord Ram. The day Nitish Kumar ji resigned as the Chief Minister of the INDI-Alliance and joined back the NDA, I announced that I would dedicate my turban to Lord Ram," Mr Choudhary told ANI on Tuesday.
Nitish Kumar returned to the National Democratic Alliance in January this year, after having developed "differences" with the Mahagathbandhan alliance. This was his fifth crossover in the past ten years, preceding his ninth time as the Chief Minister.
This led to the collapse of the Mahagathbandhan government after which the NDA government was formed in the state.
BJP leaders Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Sinha were sworn in as the Deputy Chief Ministers.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)