PATNA: Counting of votes for the Bankipur assembly bypoll in Bihar began at 8 am on Monday, with the focus on whether Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor, making his electoral debut, can wrest the seat from the BJP.The bypoll was necessitated after BJP national president Nitin Nabin resigned from the assembly seat in April following his election to the Rajya Sabha.“The counting of votes for the Bankipur by-election began amid tight security arrangements,” an official told PTI.Also Read: By-Election Results Live UpdatesThe bypoll, conducted on July 30, recorded a voter turnout of 34.30%, marking a decline of over seven percentage points from the 41.45% turnout recorded in the previous assembly election.A total of 26 candidates are contesting the by-election.Nitin Nabin had won the seat for the fifth consecutive time in November 2025, defeating his nearest rival RJD’s Rekha Gupta by a margin of more than 50,000 votes. The RJD has once again fielded Gupta for the bypoll.The contest also marks the electoral debut of former poll strategist Prashant Kishor, who founded the Jan Suraaj Party a few years ago. The BJP, which has maintained an unbeaten run in the constituency since 1995 when it was known as Patna West, has fielded youth wing leader Neeraj Kumar Sinha to retain the seat.(With agency inputs)
