Jan Suraaj Fails to Open an Account as Bid to Present Alternative Narrative Finds No Takers

Former election strategist Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party (JSP), touted during the campaign as a potential “X factor” in the Bihar polls, failed to secure even a single seat in the 243-member Assembly, despite fielding candidates in 238 constituencies.

Election Commission data shows that a large majority of JSP nominees received less than 10% of the total votes polled, resulting in most of them forfeiting their deposits.

The party’s strongest performance came from Naveen Kumar Singh, also known as Abhay Singh, who finished second in Marhaura. The seat was won by RJD’s Jitendra Kumar Rai, who secured a victory margin of 27,928 votes.

Despite running a high-energy campaign focused on issues like unemployment, migration and lack of industrial growth, the newly formed party struggled to translate its outreach into votes. According to poll data, most JSP candidates are on track to lose their security deposits.

Under election rules, candidates must receive at least one-sixth of the total votes cast to retain their deposit — ₹10,000 for general category candidates and ₹5,000 for SC/ST candidates.

In several constituencies, JSP candidates even polled fewer votes than the NOTA (None of the Above) option. At Forbesganj, party candidate Mohammad Ekramul Haque secured only 977 votes, while NOTA received 3,114.

Only a handful of JSP candidates managed to cross the 10% vote share. Among them were YouTuber Tripurari Kumar Tiwary, popularly known as Manish Kashyap, who secured 17.2% in Chanpatia after 24 rounds of counting, and Sarfaraj Alam, who received 16.26% in Jokihat. Bhojpuri singer Ritesh Pandey also failed to make an impact, managing just 7.45% votes.

Kishor had earlier predicted a sweeping victory for his outfit, claiming the party could win up to 150 seats. He later remarked that JSP would either finish at the top or at the bottom of the tally - with no middle ground. Ultimately, he did not contest the elections, despite initially indicating a possible run from Raghopur, the constituency of RJD leader and INDIA bloc CM face Tejashwi Yadav.

JSP’s Bihar president Manoj Bharti acknowledged that the party’s message did not connect with the electorate. “We wanted to introduce a new kind of politics in Bihar. From the beginning, we knew people would either fully understand our vision or completely reject it,” he said, adding that the party would continue its efforts in the state.

Party spokesperson Pavan K. Varma stated that JSP will conduct a thorough and “serious review” of its disappointing performance.

Political analysts believe that Kishor’s decision to stay out of the electoral contest may have significantly weakened the party’s prospects.