PatnaNovember 13, 2025 08:48 PM IST
First published on: Nov 13, 2025 at 07:59 PM IST
“The farther one goes away from Bihar, more interesting Prashant Kishor appears” – this was how CPI (ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya recently described Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor a.k.a. PK.
Kishor, 48, may not emerge as a major player in the Bihar Assembly elections, but no one could deny the buzz that the Jan Suraaj generated in its electoral debut.
The poll strategist-turned-politician Kishor, who sought to move beyond caste politics, made jobs, migration, education and health care the central plank of his party, setting a narrative over these issues in his intense campaign for the Bihar polls.
The Jan Suraaj however did not seem to create much resonance among the state’s voters, mainly due to two reasons. One, the party was founded by Kishor only on October 2, 2024 following his two-year padyatra across Bihar. So, a three-year period was considered to be not enough to build up a party in a state like Bihar. And, secondly, it would be an uphill task for any party to rise above the deeply-entrenched caste structure of Bihar.
Kishor, who hails from Konar village in Rohtas district, fielded the Jan Suraaj candidates in all 243 constituencies of the state, four of whom dropped out of the polls. The social media hype around Kishor was not echoed by voices from the ground in Bihar even though his candidates seemed to have put up strong fights in about 15 seats, including Darbhanga, Jokihat (Araria), Marhaura (Saran) and Chiraiya (East Champaran).
As the campaign progressed, there was a common refrain among voters in various belts, that “Kishor has been saying nice things but he talks in an idealistic manner” or “it is very difficult to break the caste shackles”, or that “it will take time for PK to emerge as a real player in Bihar politics”.
The Jan Suraaj, however, struck a chord among a section of unemployed youths and migrant voters. Several people said Kishor should have declared his candidates at least a year ago so that they could have interacted with voters more effectively and understood their concerns and problems.
Also, Kishor’s move not to contest the election himself might not have gone down well with the voters. “Had PK contested either from Kargahar in Rohtas (his home turf) or Raghopur (Tejashwi Yadav’s constituency), it could have sent a strong message about his leadership,” a Kaimur resident said.
There was also a view that the Jan Suraaj professional team (JSPT) sought to “control and dictate” terms to the party candidates in a “corporate manner” of contesting the elections.
The “PK factor” however featured in every conversation amid a perception that it could be the “X factor” in the polls. Kishor himself said his party would get either 150 seats or below 10.
Several voters said the Jan Suraaj may emerge as the third pole of Bihar politics and could become a significant player in the 2030 Assembly polls if it manages to garner at least 6-7% votes in this election.