Prashant Kishor: From election backrooms to Bihar Assembly
Former election strategist Prashant Kishor is leading in Bankipur byelection
Prashant Kishor, the election strategist and founder of the Jan Suraaj Party (JSP), announced his candidacy for the Bankipur Assembly byelection in Patna last month. Kishor stated he would acknowledge the people's endorsement of the BJP's policies if they won, but if they lost, the government would acknowledge the people's disapproval.
The seat became vacant after BJP leader Nitin Nabin joined the Rajya Sabha. Kishor, born in 1977 in Rohtas district, Bihar, has extensive political background, including working with the BJP, the Mahagathbandhan, and various other political parties. In the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections, Kishor led the Bankipur constituency by over 19,000 votes after 28 rounds of counting.
Born to a medical practitioner father and a homemaker mother, Kishor completed his schooling in Buxar, followed by studies at Patna Science College and Lucknow University. He earned a BBA from Lucknow University and advanced degrees in public health and healthcare management. Kishor worked as a UN-funded public health expert for eight years before founding I-PAC.
He served as the vice-president of the JD(U) and later left the party in 2020 due to differences over the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Kishor's launch of the JSP in 2024 and his subsequent entry into active politics led to the JSP securing over 3.4% of the vote in the 2025 Assembly elections, where they contested from Bankipur.
Written by urgent.news from The Hindu's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.
