Patna: RJD on Monday named Rekha Gupta as its candidate for the Bankipur assembly byelection, ending speculation that the Mahagathbandhan could support Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor as a common opposition nominee against the BJP.State RJD president Mangani Lal Mandal told reporters here that Gupta’s selection was a unanimous Mahagathbandhan decision. He said Rekha Kumari, also known as Rekha Gupta, had contested Bankipur in the Nov 2025 assembly polls and polled 46,363 votes. Mandal said the RJD decided to field her again.The vacancy in Bankipur arose after MLA and BJP national president Nitin Nabin resigned from the assembly following his elevation to the Rajya Sabha.The announcement is a setback to sections of the RJD’s ally Congress, as some functionaries had favoured backing Kishor as the opposition’s joint face in a constituency long regarded as a BJP bastion. Asked about such reports, Mandal said the RJD had heard no such proposal from the Congress leadership. He asserted that all Mahagathbandhan partners supported Gupta’s candidature and said the RJD was not claiming any seat where an ally had been the principal contender. Bankipur was contested by the RJD last time, he said, and the party would contest it again.The RJD’s move came a day after Kishor, a political strategist turned politician, declared he would contest Bankipur himself, marking his direct electoral debut. Kishor has described the bypoll as a referendum on Bihar’s two-month-old NDA govt.Gupta’s renomination gives the RJD a candidate with an established voter base among the Vaishya community, while Kishor’s entry has widened the race beyond the BJP-RJD rivalry. Bankipur has remained a BJP stronghold for nearly three decades, but the BJP is yet to name its candidate to defend Nabin’s turf.Former minister Tej Pratap Yadav, who launched the Janshakti Janata Dal after his expulsion from the RJD by Lalu Prasad. has backed social activist Veena Manvi as candidate.Nomination filing began on Monday and will continue until July 13. Voting is scheduled for July 30, and counting will take place on Aug 3.
