# Prashant Kishor ends BJP’s Bankipur run in three-seat bypoll shock 2026-08-06T21:30:33+00:00 | Politics | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Prashant Kishor defeated the BJP’s Neeraj Kumar by 19,324 votes in Bankipur, ending the party’s decades-long hold over the Patna seat. The Jan Suraaj Party’s first major electoral win came months after it drew just 3.34% in Bihar’s Assembly election. In Madhya Pradesh’s Datia, Congress candidate Ghanshyam Singh defeated BJP nominee Ashutosh Tiwari by just over 6,000 votes. The BJP retained Gujarat’s Manjalpur, where Satish Govindbhai Patel won by more than 30,000 votes. The Hindu reports that the BJP’s Bankipur vote share fell to 34.4%, from more than 60% in most earlier contests. Analysts point to student anger, local grievances, caste shifts and candidate factors, but caution against treating three bypolls as proof of a lasting national trend. The results do show that BJP dominance was not uniform, even in a stronghold. The Hindu says Bankipur’s electorate cut across traditional caste and community lines. ## Coverage - frontline.thehindu.com - frontline.thehindu.com - thehindu.com - thehindu.com Tags: Bankipur, Bihar, BJP, byelections, Prashant Kishor Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/prashant-kishors-bankipur-win-dents-bjps-bihar-stronghold/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/prashant-kishors-bankipur-win-dents-bjps-bihar-stronghold/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.