Prashant Kishor, the founder of Jan Suraaj party, has said that the high turnout of voters in the first phase of Bihar's assembly polls shows that migrant workers have emerged as the "X factor" of this election. He called them the "biggest assets of change."
In an exclusive interview, the Jan Suraaj founder credited the nearly 65 per cent voter turnout to the palpable excitement of voters upon seeing his party offer a third choice, moving beyond the two established options of Lalu Prasad Yadav and Nitish Kumar.
"The X factor of these elections is migrant labourers, not women. Those who returned for Chhath and stayed on would not usually have done so merely for Lalu-Nitish. But now people are thinking, let's stop and see. Let's vote and see," Kishor told the media.
Discussing Bihar's 30-year "status quo" politics, where the public felt compelled to choose between only Lalu and Nitish, Kishor claimed that voters this time saw a third option in the Jan Suraaj party and were motivated to vote.
"Migrant labour was a captive voter of the National Democratic Alliance. That is why the people of the NDA, six to eight months ago, made a major effort, travelling around the country. They conducted a campaign under Bharat Shresth Bharat—it was a big event, and multiple senior politicians went there. They said, 'All of you, come back here.' They even started 12,000 trains and talked about offering a 20 per cent discount. But as soon as they engaged with them, they [the NDA] realised that the migrant labourers are looking for change," he claimed.
"Earlier, the NDA represented change, so they were NDA voters. In today’s context, Jansuraj is representing the change. And they constitute such a large number of migrant labourers that this is going to shift the scale and the result of the election," he added.
Kishor expressed strong confidence that Nitish Kumar would not be returning as Chief Minister of Bihar, arguing that a voting percentage of this magnitude is "not possible" if the public supported the incumbents.
"Nitish ji is leaving. Do not forget this. In this election? Yes, in this election. Now, with 65–67 per cent voting in Bihar, this is not a pro-incumbency trend. That is not possible. The people making predictions are merely talking in the air. That’s why they are saying that," he stated.
A day after the conclusion of the first phase of the Bihar polls on November 7, the Jan Suraaj founder highlighted the contribution of migrant voters who, he claimed, came out in large numbers to "vote for badlav [change]."
Kishor predicted that on the day of the vote count, November 14, "history will be made" as the public's vote for change will be reflected in the results.
According to the 2011 census, Bihar has approximately 706,000 migrant workers, individuals who have left the state in search of employment. These workers travel across the country to places including Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, and Uttar Pradesh. During the Chhath festival, which was celebrated this year from October 25 to 28, lakhs of migrant workers returned to the state and remained there to cast their vote.
The first phase of the assembly elections in Bihar concluded peacefully on Thursday, registering a record voter turnout of 64.66 per cent, the highest in the state’s history.
Polling for the second phase is set to begin on November 11, with 122 seats across 20 districts heading to the polls. The counting of votes and the subsequent declaration of results will take place on November 14.
Also read: Prashant Kishor blames Lalu, Nitish for Bihar’s troubles
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