Patna, March 22: Nitish Kumar is all set to return to 1 Aney Marg - the chief minister's official residence also popular as "CM House" - after 22 months.
He currently stays at 7 Circular Road, an address he is likely to retain for organising meetings vis-à-vis his seven resolves for a developed Bihar.
Nitish left 1 Aney Marg when he quit as chief minister in 2014 following the JDU's dismal show in the Lok Sabha elections. He first moved to a smaller bungalow on 2M Strand Road, where he stayed for around two months, as the 7 Circular Road bungalow was being renovated.
Jitan Ram Manjhi, who replaced Nitish, lived at 1 Aney Marg till June 21, 2015, refusing to vacate even after being removed from the post on February 20 last year following his rebellion against the JDU and Nitish.
He had even accused Nitish of deploying policemen to guard the mango and litchi trees at the prime address from his (Manjhi's) family.
Nitish replaced Manjhi and went on to lead the Grand Alliance to a spectacular win in the Assembly polls. His return to 1 Aney Marg was imminent, but kept getting delayed.
"The chief minister was holding his janata durbar programme at 1 Aney Marg since February 1 but began working from his office there only yesterday. The place will now regain its glory," an official in the chief minister's office said on condition of anonymity.
Some of Nitish's daily-use items have moved to Aney Marg and he even lunched there yesterday.
More of his personal belongings will shift there by Holi. "The chief minister is still spending the night at 7 Circular Road," his aide said.
"Technically, one cannot say he has shifted to 1 Aney Marg till he starts sleeping there. We can't say when he will shift, but it could happen soon."
The Aney Marg bungalow sprawls over five acres and is located on a road named after Madhav Shrihari Aney, Bihar's second governor after Independence, who held office from January 1948 to June 1952.
The road has been cordoned off for security purposes and is not open to the public now. The chief minister's bungalows and other VIP accommodations come under the building construction department, which oversees their maintenance and upkeep.
The chief minister's bungalows and other VIP accommodations come under the building construction department, which oversees their maintenance and upkeep.
