Jan Suraaj Party (JSP) founder Prashant Kishor has been a vocal critic of Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, even before the BJP leader assumed office on April 15 this year. In an interview with The Free Press Journal, Kishor launched a sharp attack on Choudhary, questioning his suitability for the post and claiming that even BJP workers were unhappy with his leadership. Kishor also spoke about his plans for Bankipur, which he wrested from the BJP in a recent by-election, and the ongoing Gen-Z protests.
Kishor attacks Samrat Choudhary
Q: You have consistently attacked Samrat Choudhary for a long time. Why are you so opposed to him?
A: Samrat Choudhary does not deserve to hold the post of Chief Minister given his background. If he continues in office, it will be a disaster for Bihar and an even bigger disaster for the BJP and the NDA. Even BJP workers are not ready to accept him as Chief Minister, so one can imagine the sentiment among others. We will continue to put pressure on the BJP's central leadership to replace the present Chief Minister and appoint someone deserving to the post.
Q: There is a perception that the BJP had other options for Chief Minister but Nitish Kumar insisted on Samrat Choudhary as his successor. What is your assessment?
A: That is not true. BJP is misleading people by spreading the impression that Nitish Kumar backed Samrat Choudhary as his successor. Samrat was the BJP's choice, not Nitish's. The BJP wanted to satisfy the JD (U) rank and file by creating such a false impression.
Bankipur development plans
Q: Can you turn Bankipur into a model constituency for other legislators to emulate?
A: I hope so. We are trying to fulfil all the promises we made, including ensuring that people get their full ration, providing quality education and creating employment opportunities.
We plan to shift children from government schools to private schools and also bear the financial expenditure over it if quality education is not provided in government schools within a year. Apart from our pre-poll commitments, we have now also pledged to facilitate 10,000 private-sector jobs for educated youth from Bankipur.
Impact of by-election victory
Q: What impact will your Bankipur by-election victory have on Bihar politics?
A: It will certainly have an impact on state politics. The impact is already visible. The government's agenda has changed after the Jan Suraaj Party's victory in the by-election.
The government is now talking about quality education, job creation and investment. Earlier, the Chief Minister used to focus mainly on crime, criminals and half-encounters. He has now stopped talking about those issues.
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Kishor on Gen-Z protests
Q: What is your view on the Gen-Z protests?
A: The government should take the Gen-Z protests seriously. The influence of social media cannot be underestimated either.
One generation that grew up with WhatsApp and Facebook played a role in making Narendra Modi Prime Minister. But now we have the Instagram generation, and I doubt whether the BJP will be able to handle it.
