NEW DELHI/PATNA : Bankipur in Patna is Bihar’s only kayastha-dominated Assembly constituency, which is set to witness a fiercely contested by-election. The entry of Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor in the fray has made the contest triangular, with the BJP and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) being the other two serious contenders.
While Kishor’s electoral debut has evoked media attention, the RJD has once again fielded Rekha Gupta from the Vaishya community, who finished runner- up to former BJP MLA Nitin Nabin in the 2025 Assembly election.
Though the BJP continues to enjoy overwhelming support among kayastha voters— the constituency’s most dominant voter group— there are signs of shifting political sentiments, particularly among younger voters. Sudha Sinha, a kayastha woman employed with a finance company in Patna, said the BJP may face a tougher contest.
“The BJP enjoys the support of 90 per cent of kayastha voters, apart from its other traditional vote banks, and has expressed its trust in the community by electing Nabin to the top organisational post. However, after the NEET episode, the next generation of the kayastha community appears to have become somewhat disenchanted,” she remarked.
Observers say that the BJP took a preemptive step when it replaced its candidate after its former candidate Abhishek Kumar refused to contest. His father was convicted in the multicrore fodder scam, which involved the family of RJD chief Lalu Prasad, other politicians and bureaucrats.
The party replaced Kumar with Neeraj Kumar Sinha. who is a kayastha. Kumar’s father Ravindra Prasad claimed on Saturday that Kumar decided to withdraw from the election to protect the reputation of his parents and the image of the party. Apart from kayashtha voters, the constituency has a sizeable Bhumihar population, followed by Rajputs, Vaishya, Yadav, Muslims and Brahmins.
RJD too turns to vote banks for poll success
The BJP, however, is viewed as entering the contest with certain electoral advantages, as it can draw upon the support of other groups, including Bhumihar, Koeri, Kurmi and Scheduled Castes. The RJD, on the other hand, is hoping to consolidate its traditional Muslim-Yadav base while also attracting sections of the Vaishya community through Gupta.
