JAMUI/PATNA, March 19 -- On Wednesday, while on his 'Samriddhi Yatra' in Jamui, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar made a remark that has set speculations flying about the name of the possible next chief minister of the state. Placing his hand on Samrat Chaudhary's shoulder, he stated, "From here on, he is the one who will have to handle everything." The gesture by the CM towards deputy chief minister again in a public meeting at Lachhuar in Nawada has given ample indication about the next chief minister of Bihar. "Ye log kitna kaam kar rahen hain, aage bhi yehi log sab dekhenge," (These people are doing a lot of work and they will continue to contribute in the task of Bihar's development), he said. The gesture of CM signifies a calculated, symbolic endorsement of Choudhary as his successor after Nitish Kumar has been elected as member of Rajya Sabha. Nitish Kumar along with four others was elected for Rajya Sabha on Monday and since then gossip over the next CM has gained momentum. During ongoing Samriddhi Yatra, Choudhary has been prominently speaking just before Nitish Kumar and everywhere Kumar has placed his hand on Samrat Choudhar's shoulder and urged the crowd to support him, which has widely been interpreted in political circles as a 'passing of the baton' signal. This isn't the first time Nitish Kumar has spoken in this manner about Samrat Choudhary. Just a few days ago, at the end of an event in Katihar, the chief minister patted Deputy CM Samrat Choudhary on the back while he was present on stage. In Bhagalpur, when an anchor mistakenly referred to Samrat Chaudhary as "chief minister," Nitish placed his hand on his shoulder. He followed this again on Wednesday. These two incidents are now being viewed in conjunction, fuelling speculation that Samrat Chaudhary could become the next chief minister of Bihar. However, it remains unclear who the next chief minister will be once Nitish Kumar steps down from the post to move to the Rajya Sabha. Several names are currently being discussed, and Samrat Chaudhary is one of them. Senior national and state BJP leaders more or less agree with the choice. "The JD (U) is also going to have a say in the choice of the next CM, though no one can predict anything in the BJP," said a senior BJP leader and former union minister. Another BJP leader said that the party would not like to antagonise the Luv-Kush combination in Bihar, who more or less have stood behind Kumar. "With UP assembly elections due, the party leadership might opt for Nitish's choice to win over the Kurmi votes in UP," argued the BJP leader. "It is now clear that Kumar has decided to relinquish the top post in Bihar to take on a role in the Rajya Sabha ," a senior BJP leader who has been skeptical about Kumar's next move told HT over phone. He claimed, "With the BJP emerging as the largest party in the last Assembly polls by capturing 89 seats, we have a right to claim the top post after Nitish Ji." But given the BJP's record of springing surprises, party leaders are sceptical. "BJP is known for doing something different in politics and hence someone other than Choudhary may be given an opportunity to serve Bihar," said a state BJP leader. Kumar has been elected to the Rajya Sabha. His term begins on April 10. He may step down as Chief Minister next month. A new government will then be formed in Bihar. It's highly likely that a BJP chief minister will be elected this time. In this context, Nitish Kumar's statement regarding Samrat Chaudhary is significant in many ways....