Prashant Kishor predicted earlier this week that his newly formed Jan Suraaj party would secure more than 150 seats in the upcoming Bihar election if voters took a “leap of faith”. The newly formed group has named candidates for all 243 seats in the state — but its founder remained conspicuously absent from the nomination lists. A new survey suggests that the decision is likely to benefit the ruling NDA more than the Mahagatbandhan.
According to the JVC Survey, an overwhelming majority believes that the decision will influence the Bihar election outcome. Around 46% of the respondents suggested his decision to avoid contesting the elections would end up helping the ruling National Democratic Alliance. Another 36% held a contrasting view that it could also benefit the Grand Alliance. Only around 18% of the respondents were of the opinion that his involvement would have no significant impact on the polls.
Who will win? JVC survey says…
The survey predicted that the Jan Suraaj Party would win only one out of the 243 seats it is contesting. It gave the BJP-led alliance a clear edge — expecting it to secure 120 to 140 seats and form a government. Within the coalition, the BJP is projected to win 70 to 81 seats while JD(U) gets 42-48 seats. The Chirag Paswan-led LJP is expected to win 5-7 seats, Jitan Ram Manjhi’s HAM two seats, and Upendra Kushwaha’s party one or two seats. Meanwhile the Mahagatbandhan is expected to win between 93 and 112 seats — with 69-78 seats going to RJD, 9-17 seats for Congress and 12-14 seats for CPI(ML). The CPI is expected to get one seat, and the CPI(M) 1-2 seats.
The poll strategist has however insisted that the Bihar election would be a contest between the NDA and his Jan Suraaj party.
“We are visiting every assembly constituency. Mahagathbandhan is in the third position. The fight is between NDA and Jan Suraaj. The announcements made by Tejashwi Yadav in the last 5 days have no sense at all. They are saying all this to become relevant and come to the race. Nobody is paying attention,” Prashant Kishor told ANI on Monday.
Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad Yadav versus PK
Kishor has been vocal in his criticism of both Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his predecessor Lalu Prasad Yadav — calling them the root cause of all trouble in the state. He insisted that a Jan Suraaj government must be established in Bihar to improve conditions and ensure that people in the state did not have to leave in order to make a living.
“If they vote for Lalu or Nitish again, they will have to go back to travelling like animals on trains. The people of Bihar have to decide if they want a factory made here or in other states. Lalu and Nitish are the root of all troubles in Bihar,” he told reporters on Wednesday.