PATNA: Prashant Kishor, the founder of the Jan Suraaj Party and former poll strategist, may find himself in trouble after the Janata Dal (United) (JD(U)), led by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, announced on Monday that it would write to the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the Bihar Police's anti-corruption wing, demanding an investigation into the funding of the Jan Suraaj Party.
Senior JD(U) leader and chief spokesperson Neeraj Kumar said that the party would seek legal advice before submitting a formal request to the ECI, the Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of the Bihar Police, and other relevant authorities for an investigation into the party's financial sources.
The senior leader claimed that Kishor had failed to answer crucial questions about his party's funding and could only provide details of the party’s bank account.
Kumar alleged that more than a dozen companies with paid-up capital of Rs 1 lakh each had donated a total of Rs 1 crore to Kishor’s party via the charity organization "Joy of Giving Foundation."
He further claimed that the directors of this charity organization change every two years, raising suspicions about the legitimacy of the donations. He called for a thorough investigation to uncover the truth.
"Companies donating to Kishor's party are mainly based in Telangana, which raises further questions. We cannot rule out the possibility that black money is being laundered into white through these companies," he said. He also indicated that he would make more revelations about Kishor’s party in the coming days. "Using a charity organization for political purposes is both legally and morally wrong," Kumar added.
Kumar also pointed out that Jan Suraaj Party has yet to declare its national president, and Kishor’s name does not appear in the Election Commission's official documents. He raised concerns about the party’s leadership and control, as the ECI records list SK Mishra as president, Bijaya Sahoo as general secretary, and Ajit Singh as treasurer, but none of these individuals have been seen at any of the party's meetings. "This suggests their names are being used by Kishor," he argued.
The JD(U) leader demanded that Kishor explain the connections between Jan Suraaj Party and the Joy of Giving Global Foundation and provide answers to further questions about the party’s funding.
A Jan Suraaj Party office bearer, speaking on the condition of anonymity, dismissed the JD(U) leader's claims as baseless and far from the truth, stating that the allegations were already in the public domain. "There is nothing new in what he has said," the office bearer asserted.