Poll setback deepens for Prashant Kishor as SC shuts door on Bihar election challenge

The Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain a plea filed by former poll strategist Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party challenging the outcome of the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections, asking the political outfit to instead pursue its grievances before the Patna High Court.

The challenge comes in the aftermath of a decisive electoral verdict in Bihar. The BJP-led NDA retained power in the state, winning 202 of the 243 assembly seats, while the opposition INDIA bloc managed just 35 seats, including six won by the Congress.

For Jan Suraaj, the elections marked a sobering debut. The party failed to win a single seat, with most of its candidates forfeiting their deposits — a sharp contrast to Kishor’s reputation as a behind-the-scenes architect of multiple electoral victories across states.


A bench of the Supreme Court, declined to intervene in the matter, effectively shutting the door on the party’s attempt to seek fresh polls in the state through a direct challenge before the apex court.

The Jan Suraaj Party had moved the Supreme Court earlier this week, alleging large-scale violations of the Model Code of Conduct by the Bihar government during the election process. Central to its petition was the claim that the state government transferred Rs 10,000 each to women beneficiaries under the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana after the election schedule had been announced — a move the party argued amounted to inducement of voters.

Seeking action under Article 324 of the Constitution, which vests the Election Commission with plenary powers over elections, as well as Section 123 of the Representation of the People Act, the party urged the court to direct the poll panel to take cognisance of what it described as a direct cash transfer to women voters during the election period.

The Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana provides an initial grant of Rs 10,000 to women to help them start small businesses, with the stated objective of promoting self-employment and economic empowerment.

Friday’s Supreme Court order leaves the party with the option of approaching the Patna High Court if it wishes to pursue the matter further. For now, however, the top court’s refusal underscores the steep legal and political hurdles facing the Jan Suraaj Party as it attempts to challenge a mandate that delivered a resounding verdict in favour of the ruling coalition.