‘Mark my words’: Strategist Prashant Kishor after Nitish Kumar goes back to BJP

Political strategist Prashant Kishor on Sunday made a big claim, saying that the Janata Dal (United)-BJP alliance formed in Bihar will not last long.

His remarks came hours after Nitish Kumar resigned as the Bihar Chief Minister and rejoined the BJP-led NDA to form a new government in the eastern state.

Speaking to reporters, Kishor said that the newly formed alliance in Bihar will not last until the 2025 Bihar assembly elections, which potentially means the JD(U)-BJP government would have a life span of a year or less.

“The formation that currently exists, in which Nitish Kumar is the face of the NDA and has the BJP’s backing, won’t exist until the (Bihar) assembly elections. I can give you this in writing,” Kishor said. “And the change will happen within six months of the Lok Sabha elections,” the political strategist told reporters.

Nitish Kumar was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Bihar for a record ninth time. The swearing-in ceremony took place at 5 pm on Sunday, with two Deputy Chief Ministers – Samrat Choudhary and Vijay Sinha – and six other cabinet ministers also taking oath.

In 2022, when Nitish Kumar quit the NDA alliance, Prashant Kishor had said that he hoped there would be political stability in Bihar. “Formations are changed when one’s political or administrative expectations are not fulfilled,” Prashant Kishor had told news agency ANI, while mentioning that since 2013-14, this was the sixth attempt to form a government in Bihar.

“Nitish Kumar said he was starting a new chapter. I hope he fulfils the aspirations of the people of Bihar,” the political strategist had said at the time.

Referring to his past prediction that the Mahagathbandhan alliance – comprising Lalu Prasad Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Congress as members – would not exist until the 2020 Bihar assembly elections, Prashant Kishor said he is making similar predictions in the race to 2025.

“Pichli baar bhi maine kaha tha (I had said last time as well),” the political strategist noted.

Nitish Kumar cited the state of affairs being “not right” under the Mahagathbandhan alliance as his reason for quitting. He said that he has been receiving suggestions from everywhere, including his party workers, and he listened to all of them to come to this decision. “The situation was such that I had to quit,” the JD(U) veteran said, speaking to reporters after submitting his resignation to Bihar Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar.