Prashant Kishor's electoral debut: From UN health programmes to the Bankipur ballot
Prashant Kishor, founder of Jan Suraaj Party, is leading in the Bankipur assembly by-election with 50,976 votes against BJP candidate Neeraj Kumar Sinha's 36,023 after 25 rounds of counting.
The seat became vacant after BJP MLA Nitin Nabin resigned upon his election to the Rajya Sabha and appointment as BJP national president in December 2025.
Kishor's Jan Suraaj Party contested 238 seats in the November 2025 Bihar assembly election but won none, with about 2% vote share; Kishor did not contest then.
This by-election marks Kishor's first personal electoral contest after over a decade as a political strategist.
Counting began on August 3, 2026; polling on July 30, 2026, saw about 34% turnout, lower than the November 2025 election.
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