Prashant Kishor goes told-you-so on Nitish Kumar leaving CM chair: ‘My NDA prediction may have been wrong, but…’

EVen though Jan Suraaj company father Prashant Kishor's forecasting on the NDA’s electoral prospects in 2024 and 2025 did non bear, he is now asserting that he got one key prediction right last year before the Bihar election — the political future of now-outgoing chief minister Nitish Kumar.Kishor, who had last year confidently declared that the NDA would not return to power and that Nitish Kumar would not continue as chief minister, revisited that claim on Saturday, days after Kumar is all set to step down from the post after securing a Rajya Sabha berth.The former poll strategist, whose party got zero seats in Bihar last year, said as per news agency PTI: “My prediction that the NDA could lose may have been off the mark. But about Nitish Kumar, who is visibly unfit, physically and mentally, I have been proven right."He added, “Why else would a chief minister step down barely a few months after his coalition got a brute majority in the assembly?”The BJP-JD(U) alliance had secured thumping victory in the state assembly election conducted last year in November and Nitish Kumar took oath as the CM.‘I stand vindicated’Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an Eid function, Kishor acknowledged that his electoral forecast did not fully materialise, but doubled down on his assessment of Kumar’s leadership. “I cannot say whether Nitish Kumar is leaving of his own accord or whether he is acting under pressure. But, in a way, I stand vindicated," PTI quoted the 47-year-old as saying."I was being pilloried ahead of the assembly polls when I had predicted that even if the NDA wins, he will not be made the chief minister," Kishor added.'Votes were bought'Kishor also alleged that the NDA’s electoral victory was aided by direct cash transfers to voters. "Votes were bought by doling out ₹10,000," he alleged.The remark was seen as a reference to a state scheme under which ₹10,000 was transferred to over 1.5 crore women ahead of the election announcement.He went further, alleging that Kumar’s exit was tied to internal power dynamics within the NDA. "The ruling BJP at the Centre, the union home minister and the Election Commission must have played their own roles in securing the huge mandate for the NDA. So, it is hardly surprising that the party ruling the Centre wants to claim its share in Bihar," he said.BJP CM in Bihar? Speculation growsHis remarks come amid growing speculation that Kumar, recently elected to the Rajya Sabha, may move to Delhi, paving the way for the BJP to install its first chief minister in Bihar.However, Kishor refrained from naming any possible successor, striking a self-aware note: "My prediction about my own party had proven wrong in the assembly polls".The former political consultant, who rose to prominence managing Narendra Modi’s 2014 campaign and later worked with leaders like Mamata Banerjee, said his focus now remains firmly on Bihar."I took up political activism to build a much-needed alternative for Bihar, my home state. I tried my best in the last elections, and taking the drubbing of the Jan Suraaj Party on the chin, I have hit the streets again. I will not think of other states until my mission is accomplished in Bihar," said Kishor.On Nishant’s possible entry into Bihar politicsResponding to questions about the possible political debut of Kumar’s son Nishant, Kishor struck a measured tone."We offer our best wishes, though it is just yet another instance of a leader in Bihar promoting his offspring," he added, while noting that everyone in a democracy has the right to enter public life.