BJP Funding Prashant Kishor As Part Of Election Strategy?

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav on Friday labeled poll strategist Prashant Kishor a "BJP agent." Yadav claimed that the BJP, facing losses in the elections, called Kishor after three or four rounds of voting to shape the narrative.

Mr. Kishor, who now leads his own party, Jan Suraaj, is a significant political figure in Bihar. Besides managing campaigns for various parties, he has also been the number two in Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United).

"Even my uncle (Nitish Kumar) said that he made Prashant Kishor the national vice president (of JDU) at Amit Shah's behest. To date, neither Amit Shah nor Prashant Kishor has denied this claim. He has been aligned with the BJP from the start. Any party he joins will be ruined," said Tejashwi Yadav.

The relationship between Nitish Kumar and Prashant Kishor soured in 2020 when the Chief Minister asserted that he had inducted Kishor into his party at the suggestion of Home Minister Amit Shah.

Tejashwi, the younger son of former Chief Minister Lalu Yadav and the RJD's heir, further alleged that Mr. Kishor employs salaried district presidents, a practice not even the BJP follows.

"Don't know where he gets the money from. He keeps working with different people every year. He takes your data and gives it to another. He isn't just a BJP agent, but embodies their mindset. The BJP is funding him as part of their strategy," said Tejashwi Yadav.

These allegations came after a fake screenshot—claiming that the BJP had appointed Mr. Kishor as their national spokesperson—went viral on social media.

This prompted Mr. Kishor's Jan Suraaj party to issue a statement denouncing the fake news.

"Look at the irony! Congress, Rahul Gandhi—you all talk about fake news and claim to be victims. Now see how the head of Communications of the Congress Party, Jairam Ramesh, apparently a senior leader, is personally circulating a fake document," the party said in an online post.

The Congress and Tejashwi Yadav's RJD are allies.