Patna Varsity polls: JD(U)-BJP rift widens as Kishor violates code of conduct, ABVP irked

Till sometimes ago, Prashant Kishor would boast that as an election strategist, he ensured the victory of Narendra Modi in the 2014 Lok Sabha poll. Now as the vice president of Janata Dal (United), he could ‘help’ the victory of just a couple of candidates of the students’ wing of his party in the Patna University Students’ Union poll held on December 5––but that too at a high political cost. This has happened in spite of his personal involvement in the PUSU election.

Surprisingly, the Chhatra Janata Dal (United) got locked in a grim battle for supremacy with BJP’s students’ wing, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad.

Usually campus elections are different from the polls held for state Assemblies or Lok Sabha. So there is nothing wrong if the students’ wing of the two ruling combinations of Bihar fought separately. But nobody had ever imagined that the election of a University union would lead to so much bitterness between the Bharatiya Janata Party and Janata Dal (United). The situation reached to such a pass that on December 3-4 several senior saffron party leaders including legislators, sat on dharna outside the Peerbahore police station, under which Patna University falls, demanding the arrest of none other than the high-flying vice president of Janata Dal (United) Prashant Kishor.

Not only that some of the BJP ministers in the Nitish Kumar cabinet too were extremely upset over what they alleged the direct involvement of Prashant in the PUSU election.

Some independent political observers are of the view that the chasm between Janata Dal (United) and BJP had increased so much that it may have its impact on the next Lok Sabha poll. They are of the view that Kishor is flexing his anti-BJP muscle too much and that may cost his party in the future.

The intensity of the anger among the ABVP workers can be gauged from the fact that Prashant was attacked and his car stoned on December 3rd night while he was returning from the residence of the vice chancellor of Patna University, Rash Bihari Prasad Singh. One of the stones hit the window-screen of Prashant’s car narrowly missing him. The ABVP workers were not only in very foul mood against Prashant but were furious over the way chief minister Nitish Kumar has given him a free hand in Bihar.

It all started on November 29, that is, at the height of election campaign. Some ABVP workers attacked Chhatra Janata Dal (United) leaders near Patna Women’s College. This was something very unusual.

It remains unanswered why ABVP cadres did not target the supporters or leaders of Chhatra RJD, NSUI, AISA and AISF, though political rivalry with them is a known fact. The police arrested some ABVP workers after this incident. Reports said that the ABVP members then stormed into the police station and get their men forcibly released.

The following day the police raided the office of ABVP and arrested some of their leaders. This incensed the BJP rank and file in Bihar. Some senior leaders, including former Union minister Sanjay Paswan, took strong exception over this police action.

While the BJP ministers obviously remained tight lipped, others in the organisation minced no words in criticising the police and even chief minister.

They took to the streets of Patna and sat on dharna. Senior MLAs from Patna district, like Arun Kumar, Nitin Navin and Sanjeev Chaurasia were in the forefront of the campaign.

As if that was not enough, the media-created Chankaya, that is Prashant Kishor, went to meet the vice chancellor late on December 3rd evening, and that too after the election campaign had stopped.

What had prompted Prahant Kishor to travel about ten kilometres to meet VC in such a surcharged atmosphere may not be known so easily? But the news spread like a wild fire and the ABVP men went on warpath.

Prashant Kishor remained in VC’s bungalow for hours with a large number of ABVP workers waiting outside. They raised slogans demanding the immediate arrest of Prahant as he had not only violated the Model Code of Conduct but also had blatantly interfered in the functioning of university.

However, when he came out he was attacked by enraged mob outside. Proper police protection made it possible for him to return.

Finally, the election was held under very tight police arrangement on December 5 and results announced later in the night. But Prashant’s efforts yielded some effect. The Chatra Janata Dal (United) won the posts of President and Treasurer while the ABVP walked away with three Vice Presidents, General Secretary and Joint Secretary.

However the pyrrhic victory of Mohit Prakash as President of PUSU is likely to have its impact on relationship between BJP and JD(U) in Bihar.