'Police powers misused': Prashant Kishor alleges voter intimidation in Bankipur bypoll

Prashant Kishor, founder of Jan Suraaj and candidate in the Bankipur bypoll for Bihar assembly, alleged on Sunday that police powers were misused during the polling process and that voters were intimidated. Kishor stated that his party has lodged complaints with both the Election Commission and police observers. The allegations arose after Kishor submitted a formal complaint to the Bihar Chief Electoral Officer, requesting an investigation into the actions of Patna SSP Kartikeya K Sharma and other police officials during the by-election.

Speaking to reporters, Kishor affirmed, "Police powers are being misused. The SSP tried to influence the polls and threaten voters." He and his party had already met the CEO on Saturday to submit a memorandum detailing the alleged irregularities during polling. Kishor claimed that several party workers were detained without proper justification and accused the police of acting unfairly during the election.

Kishor submitted documentary evidence supporting his claims to the Election Commission, which he said the CEO assured would be examined. The Bankipur bypoll was called following Nitin Nabin's departure from the seat after being elected to the Rajya Sabha. The constituency, a long-standing BJP stronghold, saw a three-way contest between BJP's Neeraj Kumar Sinha, Jan Suraaj's Kishor, and RJD's Rekha Gupta. Voting resulted in a 34.3% turnout, with counting scheduled for August 3.

During the campaign and on polling day, both Jan Suraaj and the RJD accused the BJP and state administration of influencing the election process, while the BJP denied these claims and accused Jan Suraaj workers of attempting to cast fraudulent votes.