Poll strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor will mark his electoral debut in the Bankipore poll, less than a year after his Jan Suraj party failed to open its account in the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections. Thus, the upcoming by-elections in Bihar have become a high-stakes battle for Jan Suraj’s political relevance.
While Kishor is not contesting the 2025 elections, he is now expected to make inroads into the BJP’s stronghold constituency.
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Bankipore by survey 2026
The Bankipore seat fell vacant after long-time MLA Nitin Nabin was elevated to the post of BJP national president and hence resigned from the assembly.
In this bypoll, the BJP nominated Neeraj Kumar Sinha, who carries the weight of the party machinery that swept the 2025 Assembly elections.
In last year’s elections, Nitin Nabin of the Bharatiya Janata Party emerged victorious by a vote margin of more than 51,000 votes, defeating the Rally for Justice and Development Party.
The Bankipur Assembly elections are scheduled to be held on July 30, while the counting of votes is scheduled to take place on August 3.
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What does the future hold for Prashant Kishore?
D M Diwakar, former director of the AN Sinha Institute of Social Studies, Patna, and currently associated with the Institute of Development Research, Jalsen, Bihar, pointed out that the political landscape in Bankipur poses a major challenge to Kishore.
“Bankipur has been a stronghold of the BJP since the 1990s,” Diwakar said.
“Nitin Nabin had previously built on his late father’s legacy here and achieved a landslide victory by about 90,000 votes in the last election. In contrast, Jan Suraj managed to get only about 7,000 votes,” he added.
However, Diwakar noted that the BJP fielding a new candidate creates a slight opportunity.
“When a party fields a new candidate with a strong local base, it can manage the constituency better. Prashant Kishor is banking on this shift to attract dissatisfied voters,” he explained.
“While Kishor’s victory remains unlikely, Jan Suraj could increase his vote share this time due to Kishor’s personal credibility,” Diwakar added.
“Since Bankipur is leaning towards the BJP, any votes cut by Kishor will hurt the ruling party first,” he added.
According to him, this leaves two possible scenarios: either the BJP wins by a low margin, or if Kishor manages to achieve a major vote split, the RJD candidate may benefit unexpectedly from it.
“Establishing his position as a resilient politician takes time, but this poll represents his first serious test as a leader in the public eye,” Diwakar concluded.
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What do voters want?
As the by-poll approaches, the lingering sentiment reflects a mix of loyalty to past development and expectations of civic progress:
“What we expect is clear. We want development, good roads, sewage system, infrastructure and further development of educational institutes,” a local resident said.
“This poll marks a new chapter for Bankipur. The BJP may have fielded a new candidate, but he is expected to continue Nitin Nabin’s long-term vision, making it easier for voters to put their faith in him,” the voter noted.
