Patna: Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor strengthened his position in the Bankipur Assembly by-election on Monday, maintaining a substantial lead after 17 rounds of counting in what could become one of the most significant political upsets in recent Bihar politics.
According to the latest counting trends, Kishor had established a lead of 9,581 votes over his nearest rival, the BJP’s Neeraj Sinha.
The BJP candidate had secured 23,957 votes, while the RJD’s Rekha Gupta remained a distant third with 8,272 votes, according to the counting figures available after the 17th round.
Jan Suraaj Camp Breaks Into Celebration
As the lead widened, celebrations gathered pace at the Jan Suraaj office, where supporters chanted slogans of “Jai Bihar” and congratulated one another.
Party leaders described the trends as a decisive endorsement of Jan Suraaj’s campaign.
State president Manoj Bharti called the outcome reflected in the trends “a victory for the people and a defeat for the BJP’s arrogance”, adding that it represented “a major victory for democracy in Bihar.”
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BJP Stronghold Faces Unprecedented Challenge
The Bankipur constituency has long been regarded as one of the BJP’s safest urban seats and is politically associated with BJP national president Nitin Navin.
Jan Suraaj leaders argued that the early trends represented a dramatic reversal in the constituency’s political landscape.
Party workers noted that the BJP had won the seat by a margin of more than 51,000 votes in the previous election and claimed the current trends showed a significant shift in voter sentiment.
Quiet At BJP And RJD Offices
While celebrations continued at the Jan Suraaj headquarters, a subdued atmosphere prevailed at the BJP office.
According to party workers present, the main gate of the office remained closed as leaders and supporters monitored the counting on a large screen inside.
The RJD office also witnessed little activity as the party’s candidate, Rekha Gupta, remained well behind the top two contenders throughout the counting.
The trends indicated a weaker performance for the RJD compared with the previous Assembly election, in which the party had finished second in the constituency.
Final Result Awaited
Voting for the Bankipur by-election was held on July 30, with the constituency recording a 34.31% voter turnout. A total of 1,30,234 electors cast their votes.
Although Jan Suraaj continued to maintain a comfortable lead after 17 rounds, the official result will be declared only after the completion of counting and confirmation by the Election Commission.
