In a major political setback for the BJP, Jan Suraaj Party chief Prashant Kishor clinched victory over BJP candidate Neeraj Kumar Sinha in the Bankipur Assembly by-election, breaching a saffron fortress held since 1995.
Published: August 3, 2026, 5:30 PM IST
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Prashant Kishor- File image
Patna: In a massive setback for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor has defeated BJP’s Neeraj Kumar from the Bankipur Assembly seat of BiharThe by-election in the Bankipur Assembly seat was necessitated following the resignation of BJP national president Nitin Nabin, who gave up the seat in April upon election to the Rajya SabhaNotably, the BJP has fielded low-key youth wing leader Neeraj Kumar Sinha.
The counting of votes for the bypoll began at 8 am here on Monday, with all eyes on whether debutant Kishor wrests the seat from the BJPTalking to reporters in Patna, Bihar ministers Shrawon Kumar and Sunil Kumar, both from the JD(U), said counting was still underway and everyone should have patience until final results were announced.
The bypoll, held on July 30, recorded a voter turnout of 34.30 per cent (around 1,30,208 voters), down by more than seven per cent from the 41.45 per cent registered in the last assembly electionsRJD working president Tejashwi Yadav visited Baba Harihar Nath Temple in Sonepur and offered prayers before the counting began.
Why are elections happening in Bankupur, Bihar?
RJD’s Rekha Gupta, who lost to BJP’s Nitin Nabin in the 2025 assembly elections by a margin of over 50,000 votes, has been fielded again by her partyA little less than 3.8 lakh voters, including 2,00,060 men, 1,79,533 lakh women and 23 third gender persons, were eligible to vote in the polls.
