Who Is Preeti, Jan Suraaj's Transgender Candidate For Bihar Assembly Polls

The 51 candidates unveiled Thursday by Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj Party showcased a sparkling collection of doctors, lawyers, retired bureaucrats and police officers. The party also fielded Preeti Kinnar, a transgender woman.

Preeti has been named as the candidate from Bhorey, a constituency in Bihar's Gopalganj.

Preeti, a social activist, has been pitted against a high-profile incumbent minister of the state. The sitting MLA of Bhore is Sunil Kumar, Nitish Kumar's minister of education.

In an interview with NDTV Thursday, Kishor, a poll strategist-turned politician, said his candidates were chosen on basis of their work for the people and if they were not elected, it would reflect on the people of Bihar and not him. "If you don't vote for such people, then it is not a burden on Prashant Kishor. This is a burden on the shoulders of the people of Bihar," said the chief of Jan Suraaj Party, which is contesting its maiden election and is seen as a wild card.

Among the candidates the party chose is well-known mathematician KC Sinha, who served as the Vice Chancellor of Patna University. The books he authored have been followed in Bihar's schools for decades.

There is also YB Giri, the candidate from Manjhi, a former Additional Advocate General of Bihar and Additional Solicitor General of India for central government cases that came up in Patna High Court.

Reports said Preeti, a resident of Kalyanpur village of Bhore block, has been associated with social work for long.

The party believes that her understanding of local issues will help her bring the concerns of the common man to the House of Assembly, reports said.

Transgender candidates have been contesting elections for over a decade in India, but not many win.

Early this year, a transgender candidate who contested the assembly elections in Delhi as an Independent secured 85 votes.

Last year, all three transgender candidates who contested the Lok Sabha elections lost their security deposits, highlighting the challenges faced by the community in gaining political representation in the country.