"Nitish Kumar Won't Become Chief Minister Again": Prashant Kishor To NDTV

Poll strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor, whose Jan Suraaj Party is gearing up for its debut in Bihar polls later this year, is open to contesting against Tejashwi Yadav, RJD's heavyweight candidate and Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly.

Mr Kishor spoke to NDTV in an exclusive interview, during which he outlined his party's vision and shared how they are preparing for the big fight.

Asked if he would jump into the polls arena, he replied, "If the party decides, I will certainly contest (the polls). If the party wants me to contest from Raghopur against Tejashwi Yadav, I will do so."

Raghopur is an RJD stronghold that has elected RJD founder Lalu Yadav, his wife and former Chief Minister Rabri Devi and Tejashwi Yadav several times.

Mr Kishor said the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government in Bihar is up against a wave of anti-incumbency. "They messed up the Covid management. People are annoyed. Nitish Kumar is in his last political innings. BJP will never let Nitish Kumar become the Chief Minister again. And NDA will not form the next government in Bihar. Even if the INDIA bloc comes to power, Nitish Kumar would never be made the Chief Minister, so he is the Chief Minister of Bihar for only five months," he said.

Mr Kumar, known for his frequent jumps across the political aisle, is in his ninth term as Chief Minister. He is prepping for the polls with current ally BJP and is up against the alliance of RJD and Congress. 

Asked about the issues Jan Suraaj is focusing on, Mr Kishor said, "Corruption, migration and lack of governance, we will fight the election on these three issues. Nitish Kumar is defunct and his officers and close political friends are running the government. He has no idea what is going on. We all know who is running the government. We will raise these issues in the coming election."

To a question on whether such issues resonate with the electorate in Bihar, widely perceived as being driven by caste equations, he replied, "Let's not doubt the wisdom of the people of Bihar. They understand development very well. That is why they voted for Nitish Kumar against Lalu Prasad Yadav and brought him to power. Lalu Prasad Yadav was at his peak then. People voted him out because he did not believe in development. Similarly, Nitish Kumar has also been exposed. That's why his power was cut to size in the last Assembly election," he said.

Mr Kishor had joined Nitish Kumar's party in 2018. He quit two years later after disagreements with the leadership over the Citizenship Amendment Act.

Asked about his presence at Iftar parties and whether it is aimed at appeasing minorities, he replied, "There is nothing wrong in attending Iftar parties when I am moving in the field. If it is Ramzan and an Iftar party is going on, I will certainly attend that. I don't believe in hosting Iftar parties," he said.

Asked about rivals' charge that he was also planning his moves as per caste equations, Mr Kishor said, "It's a wrong allegation. I am above caste politics. I would give representation to all castes in ticket distribution, in proportion to their population. We will give representation to all castes, especially worthy people. I don't hold caste meetings. Tejashwi and Lalu Yadav do typical caste politics, whereas Chirag Paswan does not do it. That is the difference."

He also said caste equations are key in several states, including South India, "but we talk only about states like Bihar and UP".

Speaking about the caste survey conducted by the Mahagathbandhan government before Nitish Kumar's latest flip-flop, he said, "The government here just conducts caste surveys, but nobody talks about what's after that. You need to work on the survey results."

In a personal question, Mr Kishor was asked if his image of a poll strategist hampers his political prospects. "I have also worked in the UN. I worked as a political consultant, but now I am a full-time politician. Please don't judge me by my past profession," he replied.