As Prashant Kishor scripted a historic win in BJP’s Bankipur bastion, his namesake rivals for Bihar’s veteran leaders lost their deposits.
Prashant Kishor’s electoral debut in the Bankipur bypoll produced an unusual footnote: two independent candidates named Lalu Prasad Yadav and Nitish Kumar , sharing names with Bihar’s most recognisable politicians , appeared on the EVM alongside him, but fared dismally at the polls.
The independent Lalu Prasad Yadav polled just 81 votes (0.06% vote share), while the independent Nitish Kumar secured 149 votes (0.11%). Both lost their security deposits, as Election Commission rules require candidates to secure at least one-sixth of valid votes polled to retain their deposit; failing this, the amount is forfeited to the treasury.
The real contest, however, belonged to Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor, who defeated BJP’s Neeraj Kumar , a relatively low-profile youth wing leader fielded after original candidate Abhishek “Bunty” withdrew citing family reasons by a margin of roughly 19,000 votes. The win marked Kishor’s first electoral victory and ended BJP’s decades-long hold on the seat.
Twenty-five candidates, including eight independents, contested the seat. The bypoll was necessitated after former BJP MLA Nitin Nabin’s resignation following his elevation to the Rajya Sabha. RJD’s candidate Rekha Gupta, who had lost to Nabin by over 50,000 votes in the 2025 Assembly election, managed only 14,273 votes this time.
Bankipur, with nearly 3.8 lakh voters, recorded a turnout of 34.30%, notably lower than the 41.45% seen during the 2025 Assembly election, held on July 30.
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