Chirag Paswan pays tribute to Bihar Kesari Dr. Shrikrishna Singh
Synopsis
Union Food Processing Minister Chirag Paswan paid tribute to Dr. Shrikrishna Singh — Bihar's first Chief Minister and 'Bihar Kesari' — on his birth anniversary, saluting his legacy as a freedom fighter and founding figure of modern Bihar.
Key Takeaways
Chirag Paswan , Union Food Processing Minister and LJP (Ram Vilas) president, posted the tribute on October 21, 2026 .
Shrikrishna Singh was Bihar's first Chief Minister, serving from 1946 to 1961 .
He is popularly known as 'Bihar Kesari' (Lion of Bihar) for his role as a freedom fighter and Congress leader.
Paswan offered tribute in Hindi, extending 'shata-shata naman' — a hundred salutes — on the occasion of Singh's birth anniversary.
The tribute follows a well-established tradition of Bihar's political leaders marking anniversaries of the state's founding icons.
On the birth anniversary of Bihar's first Chief Minister, Union Food Processing Minister Chirag Paswan paused to honour the man who shaped modern Bihar — offering a tribute rooted in both personal political lineage and the state's founding history.
Posting on Wednesday, October 21, 2026, Paswan wrote in Hindi: 'बिहार के प्रथम मुख्यमंत्री एवं बिहार केसरी डॉ. श्रीकृष्ण सिंह जी की जयंती पर उन्हें शत्-शत् नमन एवं विनम्र श्रद्धांजलि' — 'On the birth anniversary of Bihar's first Chief Minister and 'Bihar Kesari' Dr. Shrikrishna Singh, I bow to him with a hundred salutes and offer humble homage.'
The man behind the title 'Bihar Kesari'
Dr. Shrikrishna Singh remains one of the towering figures in Bihar's political memory. A prominent freedom fighter and Congress stalwart, he served as Bihar's Chief Minister from 1946 to 1961 — a stretch that spanned the final years of colonial rule, independence, and the formative decade of Indian democracy. The honorific 'Bihar Kesari' (Lion of Bihar) speaks to the reverence he commands across party lines in the state.
His tenure shaped Bihar's administrative and agricultural foundations at a moment when India was still writing its constitutional rules. His legacy endures in the political consciousness of a state that continues to wrestle with questions of development, identity, and representation.
A ritual of remembrance in Indian politics
Paswan's tribute is part of a well-established commemorative tradition: Indian political leaders — especially those from Bihar — routinely mark the birth anniversaries of pre- and post-independence icons as a form of public solidarity with their state's heritage. For Paswan, national president of the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) and son of the late Ram Vilas Paswan, honouring Bihar's founding figures carries both cultural weight and political resonance in a state that remains central to national electoral arithmetic.
Point of View
Publicly commemorating Dr. Shrikrishna Singh is more than ceremonial — it signals a deliberate rootedness in Bihar's political heritage at a time when the LJP (Ram Vilas) is consolidating its identity as the steward of his father Ram Vilas Paswan's legacy. Honouring figures venerated across Bihar's caste and ideological spectrum also reinforces Paswan's aspiration to be seen as a Bihar-wide, not merely community-specific, political voice. In the broader arc of NDA politics, such acts of commemoration serve as low-cost but high-visibility affirmations of state pride. The tribute underscores how birth anniversaries of independence-era icons remain a central grammar of Indian electoral politics.
NationPress
21 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Dr. Shrikrishna Singh?
Dr. Shrikrishna Singh was Bihar's first Chief Minister, serving from 1946 to 1961. A prominent freedom fighter and Congress leader, he earned the title 'Bihar Kesari' (Lion of Bihar) for his towering role in the state's political and administrative history.
Why is Dr. Shrikrishna Singh called 'Bihar Kesari'?
The honorific 'Bihar Kesari,' meaning Lion of Bihar, reflects the deep reverence for Dr. Shrikrishna Singh's leadership during the independence movement and his foundational role in shaping post-independence Bihar.
Why did Chirag Paswan pay tribute to Dr. Shrikrishna Singh?
Chirag Paswan paid tribute on the occasion of Dr. Shrikrishna Singh's birth anniversary, following a common practice among Bihar's political leaders of publicly honouring the state's founding icons.
What is Chirag Paswan's political role?
Chirag Paswan serves as India's Union Minister of Food Processing Industries and is the national president of the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), the party founded by his father, the late Ram Vilas Paswan.
How long did Dr. Shrikrishna Singh serve as Bihar's Chief Minister?
Dr. Shrikrishna Singh served as Bihar's Chief Minister for approximately 15 years, from 1946 to 1961 — a tenure that covered the transition from British rule through the first decade of independent India.
