Patna: Political strategist and politician Prashant Kishor announced on Wednesday that he will not be a candidate in the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections set for November 6 and 11. In an interview, the founder of the Jan Suraaj Party explained that this decision was made for the benefit of the party as a whole, allowing him to concentrate on organizational tasks and support other candidates rather than focusing on his own campaign. Speculation had grown after Kishor suggested he could inflict an Amethi-like defeat on Tejashwi Yadav in Raghopur, a stronghold of the RJD leader. However, on Tuesday, the party surprised many by selecting Chanchal Singh to contest in that constituency instead.
The Jan Suraaj Party has unveiled two lists featuring 117 candidates from various fields, including education, retired civil service, and social work. Kishor has set a goal of winning at least 150 seats out of Bihar’s 243, stating that anything less would be a personal loss. He asserted that the party would either secure a significant victory or suffer a defeat, with fewer than 150 seats indicating failure. The former election strategist highlighted that Jan Suraaj stands for a movement advocating clean politics and accountability, not merely electoral victory.
This announcement follows Kishor’s pointed criticisms of both major political alliances in Bihar, predicting that the ruling NDA is likely to decline due to internal conflicts over seat-sharing and suggesting that Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will not return to power. Kishor also condemned RJD leader Lalu Prasad Yadav’s family over corruption issues and vowed that if Jan Suraaj comes to power, it would implement laws aimed at addressing the corruption of the state’s 100 most corrupt leaders and officials.
