PK's Jan Suraaj Party fails in Bihar, loses deposit on 3 out of 4 seats

Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party faced a major blow in the November 2024 by-elections held across four seats in Bihar. Despite the party's initial optimism, all four candidates failed to secure any victories, with three of them losing their security deposits. The results indicate a significant setback for Kishor’s efforts to establish his political party in the state, with voter support proving to be far weaker than anticipated.

In the Ramgarh by-election, Jan Suraaj’s candidate Sujeet Singh Kushwaha secured just 6,513 votes, amounting to a mere 3.87% of the total vote share. Kushwaha ended up in fourth place, with the contest largely dominated by the BJP’s Ashok Kumar Singh, who defeated BSP’s Santosh Singh by a slender margin of 1,362 votes. The Ramgarh seat, which was previously held by Rajd’s Sudhakar Singh, witnessed a close contest between BJP and BSP, making it a significant loss for Kishor’s party.

The Belaganj by-election also proved disastrous for Jan Suraaj. Mohammad Amjad, the party’s candidate, secured only 17,285 votes, or 10.66% of the total vote share. Despite a respectable effort, this was not enough to challenge the other contenders. The seat, previously held by Rajd MP Surendra Prasad Yadav, saw JD(U)’s Manorama Devi claim victory by defeating Rajd’s Vishwanath Singh Yadav with a commanding margin of 21,391 votes. The loss marks another missed opportunity for Jan Suraaj, which had hoped to gain ground in this seat.

In the Tarari constituency, Jan Suraaj’s Kiran Singh faced a humiliating defeat, garnering only 5,622 votes, or 3.48% of the vote share. This led to a loss of security deposit for Singh, whose performance was far below expectations. The seat, once held by CPI-ML’s Sudama Prasad, saw BJP’s Vishal Prashant secure a decisive victory, defeating CPI-ML’s Raju Yadav by a margin of 10,612 votes. This victory marks a historic achievement for BJP in this seat, traditionally dominated by JD(U).

The only bright spot for Jan Suraaj came in Imamganj, where Jitendra Paswan finished in third place with 37,103 votes. While this result allowed Jan Suraaj to retain its deposit, it did not result in a win. The seat saw a keen battle between Rashtriya Janata Dal’s Diya Manjhi and Roshan Manjhi, with Diya Manjhi winning by 5,945 votes. Despite a strong performance, Jan Suraaj’s efforts fell short, and Paswan’s third-place finish failed to bring a significant impact.