Being sworn in for a third term as chief minister is a commendable achievement. But Nitish Kumar wasn’t the star of the swearing-in ceremony of Bihar's new ministers on Friday. Instead, it was all about the Yadavs.

Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad Yadav is ineligible to be minister because he is disqualified from participating in elections as a result of being convicted for a corruption case in October 2013. But staying true to form, he had his moment of fame at the ceremony as he rather comically hugged Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal.


The gesture enraged many on social media, who accused the anti-corruption crusader Kejriwal of embracing corruption.



But the real highlight of the day was the Lalu Prasad Yadav clan.

For four seasons  of the Indian Premier League, Tejaswi Yadav was on the roster of the Delhi Daredevils cricket team. He never played a game. His quick-witted father Lalu Prasad Yadav remarked: “At least he will have the opportunity to serve water to the players.”

Now, “the waterboy” is Bihar’s deputy chief minister. Eleven days after this 26th birthday, Tejaswi was sworn in to the cabinet of chief Nitish Kumar, a man 38 years his senior.

He was also given the high-profile road and building construction portfolios. His elder brother Tej Pratap, who turns 28 on Saturday, was also sworn in as a minister and given the important portfolio of health.

While Tejaswi and Tej Pratap’s new role were no doubt cause for celebration for the Yadav family, many on social media were left unimpressed.

The inexperience was on display at the oath-taking ceremony, when Tej Pratap mixed up the word "upekshit" (neglected) with "apekshit" (expectations).

In a country where the minimum age for contesting an assembly election is 25, there was much anger over the fact that the Yadav brothers were given such important portfolios.

Then there was the issue of dynasty over merit, with many arguing that Tejaswi and Tej Pratap had taken the easy way to success.

The anger was palpable as soon as the brothers were sworn in. When Tejaswi was announced as deputy chief minister later in the day, it unleashed a wave of criticism. His educational qualifications were the main  target, since Tejaswi Yadav dropped out of school in Class 9.

Here’s how it all unfolded: