A seat for JSP's 'school bag': Why Kishor's Bankipur win is a warning for BJP, RJD

Kishor's Bankipur win is a warning for BJP, RJD

The Jan Suraaj Party (JSP) founder Prashant Kishor has successfully won the Bankipur assembly seat, marking a significant upset in Bihar politics. The election strategist-turned-politician, who contests on a school bag symbol, flipped the seat, which had remained firmly under BJP control for the past 30 years. Prior to this election, the BJP had won eight consecutive victories in Bankipur since 1995, including four victories in a row by Nitin Nabin, who also served as BJP national president for a brief period.

The by-election was called following Nitin Nabin's resignation to become the BJP national president. Despite Nitin Nabin's elevation, he lost the seat to Prashant Kishor, who won with a margin of 19,324 votes. Prashant Kishor's victory is particularly noteworthy as he did not contest the election himself, but instead led a high-voltage campaign for his party across Bihar.

Kishor's win sends a strong message to the BJP central leadership, highlighting public dissatisfaction with the party's leadership and urging them to focus on governance. He criticized the BJP for appointing individuals with questionable backgrounds and emphasized the need for development in Bihar, particularly in education and employment opportunities for the youth. The victory also reflects the public's disappointment with the BJP, especially in light of student protests against the NEET-UG paper leak.

The result is a significant blow to the BJP, particularly to its national president Nitin Nabin and the party's first chief minister in Bihar, Samrat Choudhary. The seat of Bankipur had been a personal fiefdom of Nitin Nabin's family, making Kishor's win a shocking verdict for the BJP.