Here is ‘Why’ Prashant Kishor Rules Out Contesting Bihar Elections?

Patna : Jan Suraaj Party (JSP) founder and political strategist Prashant Kishor on Tuesday announced that he will not contest the forthcoming Bihar Assembly elections, saying the decision was taken collectively by party members to allow him to concentrate on strengthening the organisation and coordinating the statewide campaign.

Addressing reporters in Patna, Mr. Kishor said, “The members of the party have decided that I should work for the victory of other candidates rather than fight from any seat myself.” He added that entering the fray would have “distracted” him from the broader organisational responsibilities that, he argued, are crucial for a new political formation.

Speculation had been rife that Mr. Kishor might contest from Raghopur, the Vaishali district constituency represented by Tejashwi Yadav of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). Dismissing such conjecture, he confirmed that the party had instead fielded Chanchal Singh, a local businessman, from the seat.

Mr. Kishor, who launched the Jan Suraaj Party in October 2024 after a decade as a high-profile election strategist, said the party’s approach to the upcoming polls would be “collective and reform-oriented.” He maintained that his absence from the ballot would not diminish the party’s prospects. “If Jan Suraaj wins Bihar, it will change the direction of national politics,” he said.

Outlining his agenda, Mr. Kishor said that a JSP government would, within its first month, identify the “100 most corrupt politicians and bureaucrats” and confiscate their ill-gotten assets. He also pledged to end what he described as Bihar’s “bogus prohibition policy” and to act firmly against entrenched land and mining mafias.

Expressing confidence about the party’s performance, Mr. Kishor said the JSP’s results would either be “well above 150 seats or below 10,” describing any intermediate outcome as a “failure.”

The announcement comes as Bihar heads into Assembly elections scheduled in two phases on November 6 and 11, with counting on November 14. While the ruling National Democratic Alliance and the Opposition Mahagathbandhan are locked in a high-stakes contest, political observers say Mr. Kishor’s decision to stay out of the race could allow the JSP to test its organisational depth across constituencies rather than hinge on a single leader’s candidature.