New Delhi. The people of Bankipur, Bihar, have elected Prashant Kishore, founder of the Jan Suraj Party, as their new MLA. In the assembly by-election held in Bankipur, Prashant Kishore defeated BJP candidate Neeraj Sinha by a huge margin of 18,953 votes. Prashant Kishore received a total of 63,203 votes, while Neeraj Sinha received 44,250 votes. RJD candidate Rekha Gupta came in third with 14,085 votes. The Bankipur seat is considered a BJP stronghold, so the victory of the Jan Suraj Party candidate here is a major blow to the BJP.
Neeraj Sinha and Prashant Kishore
Current BJP National President Nitin Nabin resigned from the Bankipur seat after becoming a Rajya Sabha member, which is why the by-election was held. The BJP had initially given the ticket to Abhishek Kumar Sinha, however, he later withdrew his nomination citing family reasons. The BJP then announced Neeraj Kumar Sinha as its candidate. After winning the election, Prashant Kishore targeted Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary and demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi replace him as Chief Minister. He said that by blessing him with victory, the public has sent a message to the BJP that a good person should be made Chief Minister.
PK said, “I don’t want to make big statements. My becoming an MLA won’t turn Bankipur into Bengaluru, but you will start to see some improvement in the next two to three months.” PK’s wife, Dr. Jahnavi Das, expressed happiness over the victory and thanked the people of Bankipur. Meanwhile, Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary, reacting to the election results, said, “In this grand festival of democracy, the people have chosen Jan Suraj in the Bankipur Assembly by-election. I respect this decision of the people and heartily congratulate Prashant Kishore on his victory.”