OPINION | Will Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj be the ‘wild card’ in Bihar’s election?

Prashant Kishor

Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party could turn out to be the wild card in the keenly contested poll in Bihar, which could go down to the wire in the backdrop of the SIR controversy that has polarised the scenario. As the Bihar poll is creating a lot of churn in the politically alert state, the 49-year-old election strategist-turned-politician, commonly known as PK, is the object of unease among rival sides.

His party, contesting on bread-and-butter issues, is getting traction in the state known generally as that which casts its vote on the basis of caste.

“Prashant Kishor is getting the crowds” is the often-heard comment in political circles. And it has been happening for the past few months.

Which way will Jan Suraaj’s presence swing the outcome?

It is the maiden entry of Kishor and his newly formed Jan Suraaj Party in the electoral arena that has been dominated by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Opposition leader Tejaswi Yadav, son of RJD veteran Lalu Prasad, whose MY (Muslim+Yadav) base was once a winning combination.

BJP is also a major party but has been forced to play second fiddle to Nitish for want of a leader. Congress has seen better days and has been out in the cold since the politics of the Mandal (social justice) changed the scenario in the late eighties and early nineties.

It is a baptism by fire for Kishor, who has become perhaps the most mercurial factor in the Bihar poll, with an opposition Congress leader frankly admitting that in seats where the tussle is keen, the Jan Suraaj Party can tilt the scales one way or the other.

Elaborating, he said that if the Jan Surraj candidate in a particular seat is from the upper castes, it would be problematic for the BJP and its allies. Vice versa, if Kishor fields a backward Yadav candidate in another seat, it would affect the Mahagathbandhan. In the caste-ridden politics of Bihar, Kishor is a Pandey, a Brahmin.

Crowds flock to Kishor

While there are no black and white dividing lines, the talk in the state is that the forward castes generally vote for the BJP, the non-Yadav backwards plump for Nitish Kumar, the Yadavs and Muslims prefer the RJD, a section of Muslims and others do back the Congress, and Chirag Paswan’s party draws strength from the Dalits, especially the Paswan community.

Kishor, whose party was launched on October 2 last year, has become a major talking point in the state, which shows that his efforts in taking out a padyatra in the state to reach out to the people has succeeded.

A cynical explanation for the crowd he is pulling is that local leaders desirous of the Jan Surraj ticket are chipping in with their supporters for a better claim to the seat.

A no holds barred campaign

Nitish has created a record of sorts by remaining CM for two decades by frequently changing alliance partners, which has earned him the sobriquet of “Paltu Ram”.

A few years ago, when Kishor was taking baby steps in politics, he was senior vice president in Nitish Kumar’s JD-U. He left the party following differences with Kumar, and the CM had later claimed that he had inducted him into the party following a request/suggestion from Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

Having helped Narendra Modi’s campaign to become PM in May 2014 and campaigns of a host of leaders of diverse hues from Kashmir to Kanyakumari who became CMs, Kishor knows the ins and outs of leaders, and this time has himself entered the fray in Bihar.

Things have changed now. Kishor has now become a bitter critic of the CM. He has even gone on to declare that he would leave politics if Nitish could secure more than 25 seats in the 243-member Assembly.

Bihar is known for keen contests, and therefore a variety of issues this time, coupled with the SIR controversy, have rival sides concerned over the shape of things to come.

Taking on the ‘Mandalites’

Interestingly, after experiencing Mandalite politics and rule for over three decades, a Brahmin, Prashant Kishor, is daring the champions of social justice on their performance and governance, which have not made Bihar a developed state.

The coming poll’s themes are different from past narratives. If Prashant Kishor is daring to challenge the development plank of the established parties, especially the BJP and the RJD, asking why their rule has not changed the fortunes of Bihar, the key factor in this battle is whether he will be able to break their vote bank.

While it is yet to become clear who among Nitish Kumar and Narendra Modi will be the face of the ruling front, Kishor’s bitter attack on Nitish Kumar and Tejaswi Yadav shows that he is not worried about the BJP, Congress, CPI (ML), or some other smaller parties playing their caste cards.

All in all, Bihar is in for an exciting poll.

(Sunil Gatade and Venkatesh Kesari are journalists.)