- Supreme Court dismissed Jan Suraaj's plea challenging the November 2025 Bihar election result
- Jan Suraaj contested 238 seats and won none in its electoral debut
- The plea alleged Model Code violations due to ruling JDU-BJP's Rs 10,000 payment to women voters
The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a plea by poll strategist-politician Prashant Kishor's party, the Jan Suraaj, challenging the result of the Bihar election in November last year.
The plea asked the election – in which the Jan Suraaj made its electoral debut and was routed, winning zero of the 238 seats it contested – be declared null and void over alleged violations of the Model Code of Conduct by the ruling Janata Dal (United) and Bharatiya Janata Party alliance. But a bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant refused to hear the plea. "How many votes did your party get? The people rejected you and you use this judicial platform to gain publicity?" the Chief Justice asked.
"How can you say this?" Justice Joymalya Bagchi asked the Jan Suraaj's lawyers, "You will also do the same, once you come to power", as the Supreme Court redirected Kishor and his plea to the Bihar High Court, asking also, "What is the logic of not going to the High Court. It is not a pan-India issue. There is a High Court in the state... avail that remedy."
In a petition filed under Article 32, the party had argued against the disbursal of Rs 10,000 to one woman per family, while the Model Code of Conduct was in effect, claiming it undermined the principles of a free and fair election.
RECAP | Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj Moves Top Court To Nullify Bihar Results
It alleged the then-government had extended benefits to 25-35 lakh women voters, and that this amounted to "corrupt practices" by the ruling party. Arguing for the Jan Suraaj, Senior Advocate CU Singh said, "I am not on corrupt practice alone...also on Model Code being disturbed across state. These are subject to judicial review..."
But the Supreme Court said, "It has to be shown in election that particular candidate has been benefited...and that amounts to corrupt practice.”
In an exclusive interview with NDTV after the election, Kishor made the same argument, also calling out the BJP-JDU's payment of an extra Rs 2 lakh as 'buying' votes for the landslide win.
RECAP | "Rs 10,000 To Women Big Factor In Bihar Verdict": Prashant Kishor Exclusive
In his first post-poll interview, Kishor told NDTV's Editor-in-Chief Rahul Kanwal the Rs 10,000 - paid out days before voting, formally to start their own business - "was enough to sway votes". \
The offer, he claimed, ensured Nitish Kumar's JDU swept to victory in 85 seats - 42 more than it managed in the 2015 election and 60 more than he had predicted.
Jan Suraaj boss Prashant Kishor with NDTV's Editor-in-Chief Rahul Kanwal
"Rs 10,000 was enough to sway votes. JDU shouldn't have gotten more than 25 seats. The NDA bought votes with cash," he told NDTV, claiming also that the JDU dispersed crores - between Rs 100 and Rs 125 - to each constituency.
The broader issue of poll freebies is already under consideration before the court. In a pending petition it observed that lucrative promises by political parties may push states towards imminent bankruptcy and has referred the matter to a three-judge bench.
On that topic, the court today said, "We are very serious about this issue… but would rather hear petitioners who are public-spirited rather than a party that lost everything."
NDTV Explains | Why Rs 10,000 Wasn't Sole Factor In Women's Support For NDA
Kishor - who has orchestrated dominant election wins for the BJP and JDU in the past - predicted a 'sink or swim' result for himself in his first poll, declaring the Jan Suraaj would either win a large number of seats or fail to get any.
As it turned out, his latter forecast was right. The Jan Suraaj began strongly, leading in four seats as counting began November 14, but faded away as the rounds progressed, ending with zero wins and a vote share below four per cent.
