Patna SSP played a questionable role in Bankipur byelection: Prashant Kishor

Published 1 August 2026 · local

Ahead of vote counting for the byelection for the Bankipur seat in the Bihar Assembly, Jan Suraaj Party (JSP) founder and candidate Prashant Kishor submitted

Ahead of vote counting for the byelection for the Bankipur seat in the Bihar Assembly, Jan Suraaj Party (JSP) founder and candidate Prashant Kishor submitted a petition to the Election Commission against Kartikey Kumar Sharma, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Patna, on Saturday (August 1, 2026). Kishor, who made his electoral debut in Bankipur, alleged that Mr. Sharma, along with his police officers, had tried to hamper the polling and played a role in “murdering democracy”. “For the last three days, with the help of the police, attempts were made to hamper the Bankipur byelection by the Patna SSP and several of his subordinates. The Patna SSP’s role is questionable in this entire episode.

The whole of Patna, the people of Bankipur, and Bihar have witnessed how democracy was shamed. Today, we all met the Bihar Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) and submitted the petition along with the proof,” Mr. Kishor told journalists outside the CEO’s office. Probe promised He added that the Bihar CEO had assured them that he would order an investigation into the matter, and would take appropriate action on the probe’s basis. “If action is not taken against the Patna SSP, we will approach the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of India. If that too does not work, then we will go to court. We cannot allow hooliganism while in uniform,” Mr. Kishor said.

The JSP leader said that he would hold a press conference on August 2, on the eve of the vote counting, to bring his evidence against the SSP into the public domain. The Patna police had threatened voters on the day of polling, he said. “Police along with the ruling government tried to hamper the polling. Police were also involved with the criminal elements who affected the polling,” Mr. Kishor alleged. ‘Illegal detention’ The Bankipur byelection, held on Thursday (July 30, 2026), witnessed a voter turnout of 34.3%. Even on the day of the polling, Mr. Kishor had accused the Bihar police of detaining at least 20 of his party workers engaged in poll work.

At around 1 a.m., high drama unfolded when Mr. Kishor and a large group of supporters went to the Jakkanpur police station, leading to a heated argument with Station House Officer Rituraj Singh over the “illegal” detention of JSP workers. Later, the police issued a statement asserting that during the ‘silence period’, which comes into effect 48 hours before the conclusion of polling, it was found that “individuals from other districts were present in the constituency, and there were indications that they were engaging in election campaigning”, leading to these individuals being placed under preventive detention.