Polling for Bankipur assembly byelection was held on July 30 (Representative photo) NEW DELHI: While the spotlight is on Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor, who emerged victorious in his very first electoral outing by wresting BJP bastion Bankipur from the saffron party, “Nitish Kumar” and “Lalu Prasad Yadav” were not as fortunate.The namesakes of Bihar’s two political stalwarts and former chief ministers failed to make an impact. The duo, who contested as independents, secured fewer than 150 votes each and lost their deposits.While Lalu Prasad Yadav secured just 81 votes, accounting for a vote share of 0.06%, Nitish Kumar performed slightly better with 149 votes, translating into 0.11% of the total votes polled. Independent candidates Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad Yadav polled 149 and 81 votes respectivelyThey lost their security deposits as per Election Commission rules, which stipulate that candidates who fail to secure at least one-sixth of the total valid votes polled forfeit their deposits, which are then transferred to the treasury.A total of 25 candidates contested the seat, including eight independents.The defeat of the namesakes of Bihar’s two political heavyweights came at a time when both leaders are away from active electoral politics. Nitish Kumar resigned as chief minister in March after over two decades in office and was subsequently elected to the Rajya Sabha, while Lalu Prasad Yadav, who has been battling health issues, cannot contest elections and remains barred from holding public office following his conviction in the fodder scam cases.Prashant Kishor defeated Neeraj Kumar, a BJP youth wing leader who was hurriedly fielded by the ruling party after its candidate Abhishek “Bunty” withdrew from the contest at the eleventh hour, citing “family reasons”.The former election strategist polled 64,151 votes, defeating Neeraj Kumar by a margin of 19,324 votes. RJD’s Rekha Gupta, coincidentally a namesake of BJP leader and Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta, finished a distant third with 14,273 votes.Join conversationView All Comments →Share your thoughts in the commentsInsightfulAgreeDisagreeSkepticalConcerningPromisingWorth ReadingBig DevelopmentPost CommentBe respectful · TOI community guidelinesThe bypoll was necessitated after BJP chief Nitin Nabin resigned following his election to the Rajya Sabha. Nabin had won all four assembly elections from the Bankipur seat since it was created in 2008.The Bankipur assembly constituency, which has nearly 3.8 lakh voters, recorded a turnout of 34.30% in polling held on July 30, significantly lower than the 41.45% turnout recorded in the 2025 Assembly election. The votes were counted on Monday.(With PTI inputs)Get the latest India News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.About the AuthorKaran ManralKaran Manral is a journalist at the Times of India. 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NEW DELHI: While the spotlight is on Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor, who emerged victorious in his very first electoral outing by wresting BJP bastion Bankipur from the saffron party, “Nitish Kumar” and “Lalu Prasad Yadav” were not as fortunate.The namesakes of Bihar’s two political stalwarts and former chief ministers failed to make an impact. The duo, who contested as independents, secured fewer than 150 votes each and lost their deposits.While Lalu Prasad Yadav secured just 81 votes, accounting for a vote share of 0.06%, Nitish Kumar performed slightly better with 149 votes, translating into 0.11% of the total votes polled.
Independent candidates Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad Yadav polled 149 and 81 votes respectively
They lost their security deposits as per Election Commission rules, which stipulate that candidates who fail to secure at least one-sixth of the total valid votes polled forfeit their deposits, which are then transferred to the treasury.A total of 25 candidates contested the seat, including eight independents.The defeat of the namesakes of Bihar’s two political heavyweights came at a time when both leaders are away from active electoral politics. Nitish Kumar resigned as chief minister in March after over two decades in office and was subsequently elected to the Rajya Sabha, while Lalu Prasad Yadav, who has been battling health issues, cannot contest elections and remains barred from holding public office following his conviction in the fodder scam cases.Prashant Kishor defeated Neeraj Kumar, a BJP youth wing leader who was hurriedly fielded by the ruling party after its candidate Abhishek “Bunty” withdrew from the contest at the eleventh hour, citing “family reasons”.The former election strategist polled 64,151 votes, defeating Neeraj Kumar by a margin of 19,324 votes. RJD’s Rekha Gupta, coincidentally a namesake of BJP leader and Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta, finished a distant third with 14,273 votes.
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The bypoll was necessitated after BJP chief Nitin Nabin resigned following his election to the Rajya Sabha. Nabin had won all four assembly elections from the Bankipur seat since it was created in 2008.The Bankipur assembly constituency, which has nearly 3.8 lakh voters, recorded a turnout of 34.30% in polling held on July 30, significantly lower than the 41.45% turnout recorded in the 2025 Assembly election. The votes were counted on Monday.(With PTI inputs)
