Prashant Kishor Strengthens Lead in Bihar By-Election Vote Count

Bihar By-Election Update

Patna, August 3 - In the ongoing vote counting for the by-election in the Bankipur assembly seat, Prashant Kishor, representing the Jan Suraj Party, has solidified his lead after the 26th round of counting on Monday. According to the Election Commission's data, Kishor has garnered 53,566 votes, leading by a margin of 15,864 votes over Neeraj Kumar Sinha, the candidate from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), who has received 37,702 votes so far.

Rekha Kumari, the candidate from the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), is currently in third place with 11,933 votes, trailing Kishor by 41,633 votes. As the gap between Kishor and the BJP candidate widened, the atmosphere at the state BJP office shifted from celebration to a more subdued tone. In response to the emerging trends favoring Kishor, BJP leader and Agriculture Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha acknowledged the public's decision, stating that the party would review the situation in the coming days.

The counting for the Bankipur assembly by-election commenced at 8 AM on Monday, with all eyes on whether Prashant Kishor, contesting for the first time, can successfully wrest the seat from the BJP. Bihar government minister Shravan Kumar remarked that whatever decision the public makes will be accepted. He added, 'These are initial trends. The situation will become clearer after a few more rounds of counting. We hope that the mandate will favor the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), as we have worked for the development of people from all castes, religions, and communities.'

This by-election was necessitated following the resignation of BJP's national president Nitin Nabin from the assembly after being elected to the Rajya Sabha in April.

The BJP has fielded Neeraj Kumar Sinha, a leader from its youth wing, as its candidate for this seat.