Bankipur bypoll: Heart of the heartland will speak on August 3
The upcoming by-election in Bankipur, Bihar, is viewed as a critical test for the BJP's political dominance in the Hindi heartland. The race pits the BJP against challenger Prashant Kishor in a constituency that has historically been a party stronghold.
Why it matters
The result will signal the current public mood regarding the BJP's governance in the absence of former ally Nitish Kumar.
On Monday, August 3, we will get a sense of the public mood in the country, or, to be specific, in Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) strongholds such as Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Bihar. Three Assembly seats, one in each of these States, held bypolls on July 30.
The one that all of us should watch closely is Bankipur in Bihar’s capital city, Patna. Bankipur is the heart of the heartland. The outcome in this seat will provide an indication of heartland politics in the aftermath of the student protests that recently rocked the country . The seat was vacated by Nitin Nabin, the BJP’s national president, and Jan Suraj leader Prashant Kishor is contesting from the constituency, testing his caste-free, anti-BJP politics in one of the party’s strongest forts.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in