Prashant Kishor claimed that the electorate had explicitly rejected Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary based on his conduct, character and leadership style.
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Prashant Kishor’s big statement on Samrat Choudhary, says people rejected his ‘conduct, character and…’ | Image: ANI
Patna: After clinching a thumping victory in Bihar’s Bankipur constituency, Jan Suraaj founder and newly elected MLA Prashant Kishor on Tuesday stated that the people of the state have sent a message through the Bankipur Assembly bypoll results that they want to change NDA leadership in the state, alleging that voters have rejected Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary over his ‘conduct, character, and face.’ During an interview with news agency ANI, the Jan Suraaj chief said that the recent Assembly bypoll result showed people’s dissatisfaction with the saffron party and its leadership in the state.
“The victory in Bankipur is seen as an attempt by the people of Bihar to send a message to the leadership of the BJP and the NDA: appoint a better person as the Chief Minister of Bihar and focus on the promises you made when coming to powerThe language being used–crime, half-encounters, and shooting people based on their caste gamchha–must be stoppedInstead, conversations in Bihar should be about education, employment, and migration,” he said.
Questioning the BJP’s defeat in a seat it had won by over 51,000 votes in the Assembly elections last November, Kishor said the local issues remained unchanged and attributed the reversal to public disapproval of the current leadership.
“When the people here made the BJP win by over 51,000 votes in November, the roads of Bankipur didn’t break down, nor did anything wrong happen thereDespite this, if the people have defeated them here, what has changed? What has changed is that the BJP has given a new leadership in Bihar that is unacceptable to the people of BiharIt is unacceptable because people are not comfortable with that individual’s conduct, character, and face,” he said.
Taking a swipe at the Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, Kishor further alleged that the BJP had installed a leader who represented the very “Jungle Raj” politics it had campaigned against.
“The very Jungle Raj you sought votes against–if you seat an individual representing that same Jungle Raj on the chair draped in a saffron shawl, the people will not accept itThat is why people voted against the BJP,” he said.
Rejecting speculation about any immediate change in government, Kishor said the NDA continued to enjoy a clear majority in the Bihar Assembly but argued that a change in leadership was necessary.
“Where is a new government forming? There is a majority of 202; where is any talk of forming a new government? The NDA has a majority and will remain for the next four yearsOnly one change can happen: a change in the leadership of that government,” he said.
Kishor also responded to a question on RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, saying the Leader of the Opposition’s political future would depend on how effectively he performs his role over the coming years.
“He is the Leader of the Opposition; he is in the oppositionHis role has been decided by the people of the oppositionWill he weaken or become stronger? It depends on how actively he works as the opposition in the next four years,” he said.
Kishor said the Bankipur bypoll result should serve as a message to the BJP’s central leadership.
“We are fighting a battle for that leadership change, together with the people of Bankipur, trying to send this message: Modi ji, Amit Shah ji, please pay attention to Bihar as wellAppoint a capable, virtuous, and educated person as the Chief Minister of Bihar so that discussions in Bihar can finally focus on education, employment, and migration,” he said.
Coming on the heels of intense youth-led protests over exam paper leaks and rising unemployment, the loss signals a shifting political wind across the Hindi heartland, exposing vulnerable fault lines in the BJP’s traditional strongholds.
Bankipur has been the stronghold of the BJP since 1995However, the BJP’s fort was defeated by Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor, who secured his maiden electoral victory by a resounding 19,324 votes.
(with ANI inputs)
