Patna, 3 August

Political strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor registered a landmark victory in the Bankipur Assembly by-election, defeating the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in one of its strongest urban bastions and securing the first electoral win of his political career.

Contesting on a Jan Suraaj Party ticket, Kishor defeated BJP candidate Neeraj Kumar Sinha, ending the party's uninterrupted 31-year dominance in the Patna constituency. The victory marks the biggest political breakthrough yet for the Jan Suraaj Party, which Kishor launched after years as one of India's most influential election strategists.

The Bankipur bypoll was necessitated after former BJP MLA and party national president Nitin Nabin vacated the seat following his election to the Rajya Sabha. The contest was closely watched as Kishor made his electoral debut against the BJP in a constituency widely regarded as one of its safest seats in Bihar.

Celebrations erupted at the Jan Suraaj headquarters and outside the counting centre in Patna as party workers distributed sweets and hailed the result as the beginning of a new political alternative in Bihar.

The victory is expected to strengthen Kishor's position ahead of the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections, with political observers viewing the result as a significant challenge to the BJP's dominance in urban Bihar and a boost for Jan Suraaj's ambitions as an emerging political force.