Bihar Assembly Election 2025: After Quitting BJP, Influencer Manish Kashyap Joins Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj

Social media influencer Manish Kashyap has joined the Jan Suraaj party, led by Prashant Kishor, ahead of Bihar's Assembly elections. This move comes a month after Kashyap left the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Jan Suraaj Party officially welcomed Manish Kashyap by sharing the photos of him, party chief Prashant Kishor, and supporters on the micro-blogging site X.

Kashyap boasts nearly one crore subscribers on his YouTube channel, highlighting his significant digital influence. His national recognition began when Tamil Nadu Police arrested him for allegedly sharing fake videos depicting mistreatment of Bihari migrants in Tamil Nadu. Despite this controversy, he gained popularity among Bihar's youth.

Jan Suraaj Party's Election Symbol

The Election Commission of India recently assigned the "school bag" symbol to the Jan Suraaj Party for the upcoming Bihar assembly elections. All 243 candidates from the party will contest under this symbol. Party leaders are pleased with this decision, as they believe it aligns with their mission of reform and social upliftment through structured policy and inclusive development.

Manish Kashyap Quits BJP

Manish Kashyap had joined BJP before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections but was not given a ticket to contest. In June, he announced his resignation through a video message, accusing BJP of using him for political gain during Delhi assembly polls and then abandoning him.

Bihar Assembly Elections Timeline

The Legislative Assembly election for Bihar's 243 constituencies is set for October or November 2025. The previous elections took place in October-November 2020, resulting in the National Democratic Alliance forming the state government with Nitish Kumar as Chief Minister. However, political alliances have shifted since then.

In August 2022, Nitish Kumar-led JD(U) ended its alliance with NDA and formed a government with RJD-led Mahagathbandhan. By January 2024, JD(U) again switched alliances to form a government with BJP-led NDA.