Bankipur bypoll results: Prashant Kishor wins from BJP's stronghold, ends 30-year dominance in Bihar seat

In a major political development in Bihar Jan Suraaj Party JSP founder Prashant Kishor on Monday won the Bankipur Assembly byelection ending the BJPs uninterrupted hold over the constituency since 1995 reported PTIThe victory marks the first time in over three decades that the BJP has lost the prestigious urban constituencyThe bypoll was necessitated after BJP national president Nitin Nabin vacated the seat following his election to the Rajya SabhaMaking his electoral debut the 49yearold defeated BJP candidate Neeraj Kumar by a margin of 19324 votes securing 64151 votesHistoric debut victoryPolitical strategistturnedpolitician Kishor had framed the bypoll as a referendum on the BJPled government in BiharThe JSP chiefs victory came against Neeraj Kumar a BJP youth wing leader who was fielded after the partys original candidate Abhishek Bunty withdrew from the contest at the last moment citing family reasons the news agency reportedRJD candidate Rekha Gupta finished a distant third with 14273 votes Gupta had lost the seat to Nitin Nabin by around 50000 votes in the 2025 Assembly electionKishor targets Bihar governmentAddressing supporters after his victory Kishor described the result as a wakeup call for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and urged the BJP to replace Bihar Chief Minister Samrat ChoudharyThe victory is a wakeup call for Prime Minister Narendra Modi who must install a new chief minister in place of Samrat Choudhary Kishor said PTI reportedHe added that if the BJP wanted a chief minister from the Kushwaha community it should choose a decent personKishor also criticised Bihars development trajectory saying the state should not be treated merely as a factory that produces cheap labourI do not promise that my becoming the MLA will make Bankipur on par with Bengaluru But when Gujarat is looking forward to having a bullet train the people of Bihar certainly have a right to expect something better than passenger trains he saidBJP accepts verdictAccepting the defeat Bihar BJP president Sanjay Saraogi said the party respected the peoples mandateWe bow before the will of the people We shall draw lessons from the debacle unlike our opponents who tend to blame every electoral loss on EVMs and the Election Commission he said in a statementThe BJPs mood shifted dramatically as counting progressed Party workers who had earlier assembled at a sweets shop to collect around 200 kg of laddoos in anticipation of victory were left disappointed as Kishor steadily extended his lead through successive counting roundsCelebrations in Jan Suraaj campJubilation erupted at the Jan Suraaj Party headquarters replacing the disappointment that followed the partys failure to win any seats in the 2025 Bihar Assembly electionsState party president Manoj Bharti described the verdict as the beginning of a golden age for the fledgling outfitThis is the beginning of a golden age for our party The verdict is a message to parties and leaders who arrogantly think of constituencies as fiefdoms he saidAmong those present at the counting centre was Kishors wife Dr Jahnavi Das who generally stays away from politics Congratulating her husband she said This victory belongs to the people of BiharOpposition hails BJP setbackKishors victory drew praise from leaders outside his party as wellJanshakti Janata Dal president Tej Pratap Yadav and CPIML Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya described the result as a significant setback for the BJPRJD spokesperson Chitaranjan Gagan whose party has often accused Kishor of being the BJPs B team said the defeat of the BJP in its traditional stronghold was more significant than who emerged victoriousFor us the defeat of the BJP in its stronghold is of greater importance than who won Gagan said reported PTIVeteran socialist leader Shivanand Tiwary said the verdict reflected growing dissatisfaction with the BJP in Bihar while also crediting Kishors organisational skills and campaign strategyBackdrop to the bypollPolling for the Bankipur byelection was held on July 30 after days of intense campaigning by both the BJP and Jan Suraaj PartyThe campaign was marked by repeated allegations of electoral malpractices from both sides with each approaching the Election Commission over the issueThe seat fell vacant after Nitin Nabin who had won Bankipur for a fifth consecutive term in the 2025 Assembly election resigned following his election to the Rajya SabhaWith PTI inputs