“Will retire if JD(U) gets more than…” Strategist Prashant Kishor’s open dare to Nitish Kumar after his latest flip-flop, calls him ‘paltumaar’

“Paltumaar ka Sardar” (king of flip-flops), reacted political strategist Prashant Kishor as Sunday witnessed yet another shift of power in Bihar after Janta dal (United) chief Nitish Kumar dumped his old alliance with RJD-Congress and went back to the folds of NDA. He claimed this flip-flop has become the character of Kumar’s politics for survival while casting aspersions that this new understanding with NDA, too, won’t last long. Kishor called Kumar cunning who has fooled the people of Bihar.

“I have been consistently claiming over the past year that Nitish Kumar can do a flip-flop and swap sides again. But what happened today should open the eyes of the people. People of Bihar already know that he is the master of flip-flops but today BJP is also exposed. Narendra Modi and Amit Shah are equally “paltumaar”. Till last month they were saying their doors for Nitish Kumar is shut forever but today onwards they will once claim Nitish Kumar as the ideal example of good governance,” said Prashant Kishor during a press conference after Nitish Kumar had resigned early in the day on Sunday. Kumar was later sworn in as the Chief Minister for the ninth time by the evening, supported by BJP-led NDA.

Prashant Kishor, who is leading his ‘Jan Suraj’ organisation in Bihar as a non-political public outreach program, didn’t mince his words and even dared that in the next assembly election, JD(U) won’t get more than 20 seats in Bihar. The poll strategist had briefly joined the JDU in 2018 but was expelled shortly after he had openly criticised JDU's decision to back the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

“Nitish Kumar isn’t smart, rather he is a cunning human being. He has fooled the 13 crore people of Bihar. People will respond to this with interest. Leave the Lok Sabha elections aside, and wait for the Bihar assembly election in 2025. I can bet you JD(U) in the next assembly election, doesn’t matter in which formation- if Nitish Kumar contests with BJP or with another alliance and even if he fights alone, JD(U) won’t get more than 20 seats. You are recording my statement today, if I am proven wrong then I will retire for life from my current role,” said Kishor looking into the camera.

He had earlier predicted if Nitish Kumar had stayed with the RJD-Congress alliance then JD(U) wouldn’t have won even five Lok Sabha seats in the upcoming election. Kishor was hailed for his prediction as a strategist during the Bengal assembly election 2021 when in a similar fashion he had challenged that if BJP had crossed double digits then would quit his profession as a strategist. BJP in the 2021 Bengal election had won 77 seats. When asked about allegations of his role behind the power shift in Bihar, Kishor strongly defended himself and questioned if he was instrumental when Nitish Kumar walked out of NDA in 2022 and joined hands with RJD-Congress. "The BJP is doing now what the Congress had done during RJD supremo Lalu Prasad's time. Both national parties have aligned with hugely unpopular regional leaders for small gains at the central level," he added.​