"Rs 14,000 Crore World Bank Loan Used In Bihar Polls": Prashant Kishor's Party's Big Claim

Former poll strategist Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj Party has claimed that the Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar-led government "diverted" a Rs 14,000-crore World Bank fund for the 2025 assembly elections.

Speaking to reporters on Saturday, a day after the Jan Suraaj Party failed to open its account in its debut election, its national president, Uday Singh, said the funds were "diverted for doles and freebies".

"Since June, till polls were announced, Rs 40,000 crore was splurged" by the Nitish Kumar government to "purchase" votes of the people through public money, he said.

"The scale was unprecedented. Even Rs 14,000 crore of the loan they received from the World Bank has been diverted for doles and freebies," he alleged.

बिहार विधानसभा चुनाव 2025 के नतीजों पर जन सुराज के राष्ट्रीय अध्यक्ष उदय सिंह जी का बयान!! pic.twitter.com/RgJ0PDLk5Y

— Jan Suraaj (@jansuraajonline) November 15, 2025

Referring to the 'Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana', under which Rs 10,000 each was transferred to the bank accounts of women in the state ahead of the two-phased elections, he said, "It must have been the first time that people kept getting the money till a day before voting took place, despite the model code of conduct. This was enough to sway women who may have been hand-to-mouth."

He said the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which has retained the power in Bihar, would have been decimated had public money not been "splurged to buy out votes".

"Please remember that it was not until the Jan Suraaj Party promised Rs 2,000 old age pension that the government raised the amount from Rs 700 to Rs 1,100 per month," Singh said.

He also said that a section of Jan Suraaj Party voters ended up siding with the NDA "out of fear of the return of jungle raj under the RJD (Rashtriya Janata Dal)".

"I can say there was fear of the return of jungle raj under the RJD. Although I am not saying that there has been any jungle raj, the fear was there. Many people, who would have given us a chance, ended up voting for the NDA out of that fear," the former BJP MP said.

His party colleague, Pavan Verma, also levelled similar allegations, saying the amount was diverted from a Rs 21,000-crore World Bank fund.

"The public debt in Bihar currently is Rs 4,06,000 crore. The interest per day is Rs 63 crore. The treasury is empty. We have information, which could also be wrong, that the amount of Rs 10,000 given to women in the state was given from Rs 21,000 crore, which came from the World Bank for some other project. An hour before the moral code of conduct for the polls, Rs 14,000 crore was taken out and distributed to 1.25 crore women in the state," he told the news agency ANI.

"As I have said, this is our information. If it is wrong, I seek forgiveness. But if it is true, then the question arises as to how far this is ethical. It is possible that, legally, you cannot do anything. The government can divert funds and later give explanations. Explanation will come after the election," he said.

There was no immediate reaction from any NDA leader or the Bihar government.

Bihar Election Results 2025: NDA Decimates Mahagathbandhan

The NDA won 202 seats in the 243-member assembly, with the BJP securing 89, the JDU 85, Union Minister Chirag Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) 19, Union Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi's Hindustani Awam Morcha five, and Rajya Sabha MP Upendra Kushwaha's Rashtriya Lok Morcha four.

The RJD-led Opposition bloc, Mahagathbandhan, could only manage 35 seats. While the RJD got just 25 seats, its second-worst performance in a Bihar election after 2010, the Congress won six seats, down from 19, the CPI(ML)L two seats, the CPI(M) one, and the CPI zero.

Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi's AIMIM won five seats, while Mukesh Sahani's Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) couldn't open its account.

Bihar voted in two phases -- November 6 and November 11 -- and recorded a voter turnout of over 66 per cent, the highest ever in the state since 1951.