I will not contest Bihar assembly polls; will work to strengthen Jan Suraaj party: Prashant Kishor
Patna(PTI): Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor on Wednesday announced that he will not contest the Bihar assembly polls, a decision, he claimed, was taken by the party for its greater good.
In an exclusive interview with PTI, the former political strategist also said that a "tally of less than 150 seats" for Jan Suraaj will be considered a defeat.
"If Jan Suraaj Party wins the Bihar polls, it will have a nationwide impact. The compass of national politics will point in a different direction," Kishor asserted.
The Bihar polls will be held in two phases, on November 6 and November 11, and the counting will take place on November 14.
"The party has decided that I should not contest the assembly polls. And therefore, the party has announced another candidate from Raghopur, against Tejashwi Yadav. It was a decision we took in the larger interest of the party. If I were to contest, it would have distracted me from the necessary organisational work", Kishor said.
Asked what he thought of his party’s prospects in the elections, the 48-year-old leader said, "I can say with certainty that we will be either win handsomely or receive a drubbing. I have been stating on record that I expect a tally of either fewer than 10 seats or more than 150 seats. There is no possibility of anything in between".
He made the averment when asked whether his party would like to support the NDA or the INDIA bloc if the elections threw a hung assembly, terming a fractured mandate as an impossibility.
He, however, added, "A tally less than 150, even if it is 120 or 130, shall be a defeat for me. If we do well, we will have the mandate to transform Bihar and make it count among the 10 most advanced states of the country. If we do not do well enough, it would mean the people have not shown enough confidence in us, and we must continue to carry on with our politics of the street and society (samaj aur sadak ki rajneeti)".
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Siddaramaiah, I will abide by Cong high command decision on leadership issue, says Shivakumar
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Sunday said both he and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will abide by any decision takeb by the Congress high command on the leadership issue in the state.
Speaking to reporters after returning from Delhi, the Congress state president said, he has full faith in the party leadership and that it would take an approapriate decision at the appropriate time.
The remarks comes amid speculations within the party and political circles about a possible leadership change and cabinet reshuffle after May 4, when the results for assembly elections in four states and one union territory, along with bypolls to two assembly segments in the Karnataka are announced.
"I will not speak about political issues before the media. I have already said that when the time comes you will get to know. So I will not tell you," Shivakumar said in response to a question on discussions with the Congress high command during his Delhi visit over the last couple of days.
He asserted that there are no issues within the party, and whatever has been already decided will take place accordingly.
Responding to a question on senior Minister Satish Jarkiholi's reported statement about internal differences, the Deputy CM said, "nothing like that, they (high command) will do what they have to do at the appropriate time."
"There are no issues, we have faith in our party, they will do what they have to," he added.
Asked about the issue of leadership change as the government is about to complete three years in office, Shivakumar said, "... I have never discussed this issue. The CM and I have both said that we will accept whatever and whenever the high command decides, and we will abide by it."
He declined to comment when asked whether any "good news" can be expected by his birthday on May 15.
The leadership tussle within the ruling party has intensified amid speculation about a possible change of chief minister after the Congress government completed the halfway mark of its five-year term on November 20, 2025. The speculation has been fuelled by the reported "power-sharing" arrangement between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar at the time of government formation in 2023.
Responding to a question on the BJP's criticism against the Congress government over its decision on internal reservation for Scheduled Castes, alleging injustice to several communities and questioning its intent behind the revised quota formula, Shivakumar said the BJP could not do anything on internal reservation while in power, but the Congress has kept its promise.
"We have found a solution and tried to do justice to all sections among SCs. We have fulfilled the promise made and every one should go together," he said.
Shivakumar warned his party workers against erecting flex banners for his birthday on May 15.
"For May 15, I want to tell everyone that no one should put up flex banners or advertisements for my birthday. If flex are installed I will ensure that cases are registered by authorities against those responsible, whether they are party workers or followers....no one should put such things on roads, this is my personal request," he said, adding that he has asked commissioners of the city corporations to register cases and impose heavy fines.
