After 2 Decades at Aney Marg, Nitish Kumar Moves to His Old Residence—Behind CM House and Closer to His Political Rival

On Friday, the Bihar Chief Minister’s official residence at 1, Aney Marg bade its longest-serving occupant goodbye after Janata Dal (United) president Nitish Kumar vacated the premises following his move to the Rajya Sabha. For the residence and its staff, the shift marks a significant change: barring the brief nine-month tenure of Jitan Ram Manjhi, Aney Marg has been synonymous with Nitish Kumar for nearly two decades.

After 20 years as the Chief Minister of the state, Nitish Kumar has left his official address at 1, Aney Marg and moved to a new location. His belongings were sent ahead of his arrival, and now the former CM and his son, Nishant, have departed for their new home at 7, Circular Road.

A Decadelong Legacy

Apart from Jitan Ram Manjhi’s few months in office, the Bihar Chief Minister’s official residence belonged to Nitish Kumar for almost two decades. Having become a Rajya Sabha MP and stepped down as CM, Nitish Kumar has concluded his long residency. He originally moved to Aney Marg in April 2006, a few months after becoming the Chief Minister following Rabri Devi's departure. Nitish left briefly when Manjhi was appointed CM in May 2014, but returned in February 2015.

The History of the Residence

Former CM Lalu Prasad Yadav was the first to establish 1, Aney Marg—named after the former Bihar governor, Sanskrit scholar, and Constituent Assembly member Madhav Srihari Aney—as the official residence of the Chief Minister after he took office in 1990. The property originally consisted of two separate houses; one was formerly the residence of then-Assembly Speaker Radha Nandan Jha, but the properties were eventually merged into one.

During his tenure, Nitish Kumar established a Chief Minister’s Secretariat within the residence and conducted the majority of his official work from home. While most of the key bureaucrats working with him, including Anupam Kumar, have moved to central offices, his long-time advisor and retired IAS officer remains with him.

Transition to 7, Circular Road

The new residence of Nitish Kumar is situated just behind his old bungalow and is close to Lalu Prasad Yadav’s home. While all of his belongings were moved earlier, preparations to welcome the new occupant, Samrat Choudhary, have already begun.

This is not the first time Nitish will live at 7, Circular Road; he previously moved there when Jitan Ram Manjhi was appointed CM after Nitish stepped down following the JD(U)'s poor performance in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

A Meticulous Move

The former CM took great care in moving his extensive book collection. Sources from the CM's house noted, “We started the process about three weeks ago. As Nitish Kumar had already lived at 7, Circular Road after his 2014 resignation, the house was readied according to his instructions.” A stickler for rules, he ordered the shift well before he formally resigned.

The current Bihar CM, Samrat Choudhary, is presently staying at the Deputy CM’s residence at 5, Deshratna Marg. He is expected to move into the official residence within a month.

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