Has NDA Fallen Into Prashant Kishor’s Trap?

Patna (Bihar): Prashant Kishor has always maintained that his fight is not against the Mahagathbandhan, but directly against the NDA. And now, that is exactly what is unfolding. The head-to-head battle between the NDA and the Jansuraj Party is proving advantageous for the latter. The full extent of these benefits will be clear later, but for now, the picture is unmistakable.

Despite numerous efforts, NDA leaders had not been aggressive toward the Jansuraj Party. That changed about a month and a half before the elections, when files exposing the corruption of senior NDA leaders began surfacing. BJP leaders Dilip Jaiswal, Sanjay Jaiswal, Samrat Chaudhary, Mangal Pandey, and senior JDU ministers, including Ashok Chaudhary, a close aide of Nitish Kumar, found themselves under scrutiny.

Since these allegations are entirely accurate, no leader has responded or offered any explanation. Many are seen avoiding the media. Undoubtedly, such pre-election blows have left these leaders rattled.

The “file leak” campaign has also triggered a second effect: factions within these leaders’ own parties have started raising their voices, using the party’s reputation as leverage to exert pressure. Public perception of their lost credibility remains another significant factor. For example, BJP’s R.K. Singh has demanded either clarification or resignation from Samrat Chaudhary, while JDU leader Neeraj Kumar has opened a front against Ashok Chaudhary.

Now, cornered from all sides, these leaders are attempting to salvage their reputation through legal notices and defamation cases. Meanwhile, some JDU and BJP leaders have started countering Prashant Kishor, and the process of accusation and counter-accusation has begun.

This was exactly Kishor’s strategy. His goal was to make it clear in Bihar that the real contest is NDA versus JANSURAAJ. And that is precisely what is happening. In effect, both BJP and JDU appear to have fallen into Prashant Kishor’s carefully laid trap.