PATNA, Sept. 29 -- Bihar health minister and JD(U) leader Nishant Kumar stated on Monday that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will retain power in Uttar Pradesh under chief minister Yogi Adityanath's leadership in the upcoming assembly elections. Speaking during his first visit to Varanasi since taking office, Kumar's comments come as the JD(U) ramps up poll preparations, with a state-level meeting of party functionaries scheduled for October 25 in the city amid indications of a potential alliance with the BJP. " I am confident the NDA would return to power and CM Yogi Adityanath would again return as the chief minister," said Kumar. The health minister, son of former chief minister Nitish Kumar, also visited Mirzapur where he met party officials. Nishant's visit to Uttar Pradesh and his scheduled participation in the October 25 event in Varanasi are seen as part of a broader strategy to elevate the 45-year-old health minister's political profile within the JD(U), according to officials aware of the matter. These moves are widely viewed as efforts to position him as the successor to his father, JD(U) national president and Rajya Sabha MP Nitish Kumar. According to officials in the know, the JD(U) leadership is keen to elevate Nishant's role within the organization to preempt any attempts by other NDA partners to stake a claim on Nitish Kumar's political legacy. This strategy follows a recent controversy sparked by Rashtriya Lok Morcha chief and MP Upendra Kushwaha, who asserted that his party is the rightful heir to the development-driven legacy established by Nitish during his two-decade tenure as the CM. State JD(U) president, UP Anup Singh Patel said the party had already intensified its preparations for the October 25 state level meeting, which would be attended both by health minister and JD(U)'s national working president Sanjay Jha....