NEW DELHI: Jan Suraaj chief
Prashant Kishor on Wednesday announced that he would stay out of the electoral fray in
Bihar, even as he seeks to "disrupt" the state's power equation that has long swung between Nitish Kumar's JD(U) and Lalu Prasad Yadav's RJD.
Prashant Kishor, who has served both the NDA and the Bihar
Mahagathbandhan (grand alliance) as a political strategist, has set for himself an ambitious target. To replace Nitish and Lalu in Bihar's caste-driven political landscape.
But will his decision to stay out of the electoral ring give him an edge, or prove to be a strategic misstep?
Rumours were rife that Kishor might throw a direct challenge to RJD’s successor Tejashwi Yadav from Raghopur, the Lalu
parivaar's traditional bastion. The speculation was not for no reason, as PK had on several instances hinted at contesting from the bastion of either Nitish or Tejashwi.
But the buzz fizzled quickly, as PK on Tuesday fielded Chanchal Singh to take on Tejashwi instead.
Kishor said that the party members asked him to concentrate on ensuring the victory of other party candidates, which is why he has decided not to contest the elections.
The moment Kishor announced he would stay out of the contest, rivals pounced. Both the BJP and RJD took jibes at him for "accepting defeat before the battle."
“Kishor realised that he would not win elections, and that is why he announced that he would not contest polls. Whatever he had invested in forming the Jan Suraaj Party had been recovered. His party is nothing but a ‘vote katwa’ (a party that cuts the votes of others). Jan Suraaj is the 'B' team of the RJD," Union minister and BJP leader Giriraj Singh alleged.
RJD spokesperson Mrityunjay Tiwary said: "Kishor has realised that he and his party will face a humiliating defeat in the upcoming assembly polls. That is why he has announced that he will not contest. He has accepted defeat for the Jan Suraaj Party even before going to the battlefield."
Away from political jibes and rhetoric, is his decision truly about strengthening the Jan Suraaj in the polls, as PK claims, or is there more to it?
Calling the move prudent, political analyst Kumar Vijay told TOI that if PK focuses on a single constituency, he cannot give time to party candidates.
"He has taken the right decision because even CM Nitish Kumar is an MLC. Whoever leads a party needs more time. If he focuses on one constituency, he cannot give enough time to his party’s candidates. He is contesting elections across Bihar for the first time, and being the sole star of his party, I believe he thought it was prudent to devote his time to his candidates," Vijay said.
Since Prashant Kishore is the lone big face of his party, his decision not to contest the polls has raised questions about whether it could dent the morale of his candidates.
"In the present scenario, the way NDA and
Mahagathbandhan are fighting elections, they have created chaos in Bihar, especially in the ticket distribution system. This has given a certain edge to PK and Jan Suraaj because confusion has been created by these parties," Kumar Vijay told TOI.
He also said that PK may not emerge as a giant slayer in the present scenario, but the "ticket distribution system has brightened their (Jan Suraaj) chance to increase the tally".
In Bihar’s crowded political ring, Prashant Kishor has set an ambitious target of winning over 150 out of 243 seats for Jan Suraaj, calling anything less a defeat. For now, the claim looks like threading a needle in a storm.
As Bihar’s campaign battle intensifies, his gamble will be tested against the state’s hard political math, where personality, perception, and caste arithmetic collide. Whether this outsider’s playbook rewrites Bihar’s politics or fades as another ambitious experiment will be the story to watch.
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