PATNA: Prashant Kishor, who built his reputation as a poll strategist by helping others win elections across the country, has introduced a new colour yellow in Bihar politics, which has generally centred around a fight between the saffron (BJP) and green (RJD). By writing his own electoral victory story on debut in the Bankipur assembly byelection on Monday, Prashant has triggered a debate on the possibility of new political alignments by raising issues which appeal to people in a state like Bihar where migration for employment and quality education is a problem for a cross-section of society.
Journey to victory
Until now, electoral competition in the state has largely been defined by the BJP-led NDA on one side and the RJDled alliance on the other. Prashant’s victory introduces Jan Suraaj as a potential third force in Bihar, particularly in urban and semi-urban areas where governance issues and civic concerns often dominate voter priorities. Whether this translates into sustained electoral success remains uncertain, but Bankipur provides the movement with a significant breakthrough. As Prashant said on Monday, he contested the election not to become an MLA or to turn Bankipur into a metropolitan city like Bengaluru, but to send a message to the BJP top leadership to generate employment, provide quality education and check migration or be ready to face similar results in future elections. Born in Bihar’s Rohtas district in 1977, Prashant began his professional life in public health associated with the United Nations for eight years before entering the political arena as an election strategist. He first gained national prominence for helping design Narendra Modi’s successful 2014 Lok Sabha campaign. Over the years, he advised leaders like former Bihar CM Nitish Kumar and Mamata Banerjee and parties across the political spectrum. Prashant proved the sceptics wrong as many had questioned his decision to contest in the BJP stronghold for the last several decades. The seat was vacated by BJP national president Nitin Nabin after his election to the Rajya Sabha in April. Following a brief stint with JD(U) after successfully strategising the 2015 election campaign for the Nitish Kumar-led Mahagathbandhan in Bihar, the staunch believer in Mahatma Gandhi’s philosophy conducted a padayatra in several districts.
