Why Did Bihar's PK's Jan Suraaj and Mukesh Sahani's VIP Fail to Make an Impact?
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
- Jan Suraaj and VIP failed to secure any leads in the Bihar elections.
- Exit polls predicted zero seats for Jan Suraaj.
- Mukesh Sahani's VIP trailed in all 15 seats it contested.
- Bihar recorded a 66.91% voter turnout, the highest since 1951.
- The NDA is currently leading in 209 seats.
Patna, Nov 14 (NationPress) Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj and the Mahagathbandhan's Deputy Chief Ministerial candidate Mukesh Sahani's Vikasheel Insaan Party (VIP) were unable to secure any leads in their respective constituencies as of 3:50 p.m., based on the latest Bihar election trends.
Exit polls had indicated that Jan Suraaj would win between zero and two seats, and the trends at 3:50 p.m. confirmed this prediction.
Jan Suraaj was anticipated to be the potential 'X factor' in the election, mainly due to Prashant Kishor's impressive history as a poll strategist.
Kishor has played a crucial role in securing major electoral victories for Nitish Kumar during the 2015 Bihar polls, Jagan Mohan Reddy and the YSR Congress Party in Andhra Pradesh in 2019, and Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress in the 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections.
Despite these credentials, multiple exit polls predicted zero seats for Jan Suraaj, a forecast Kishor himself acknowledged, stating before the counting commenced that his party would either “perform exceptionally well or falter drastically”.
Conversely, Mukesh Sahani's VIP is trailing in all 15 seats it contested. Sahani, who opted not to run personally, was positioned as the Mahagathbandhan's Deputy Chief Ministerial candidate.
The Election Commission's website indicates that Sahani's brother, Santosh Sahni, is in eighth place out of 12 candidates in Gaura Gram, where BJP's Sujit Kumar leads by over 10,000 votes.
Sahani, a former Bollywood set designer turned politician, was deemed essential in consolidating Mallah, Sahani, and Nishad votes across the Mithilanchal and Seemanchal regions, making him a vital component of the Mahagathbandhan's strategy.
As per the latest trends at 3:50 p.m., the NDA is leading in 209 seats, while the Mahagathbandhan trails with 29.
Bihar recorded a 66.91 percent voter turnout overall in the two-phase elections, marking the highest rate since the first elections in 1951.