Jan Suraaj Party releases second list of 65 candidates for Bihar polls

The Jan Suraaj Party, led by Prashant Kishor, released its second list of 65 candidates on Monday for the upcoming Bihar Assembly Elections 2025. The list includes several prominent personalities, including Abhaykant Jha, Dr Shahnawaz Alam, Neeraj Singh, and Lalababu Yadav.

Making the announcement, Prashant Kishor said that 31 of the 65 candidates in the second list belong to the Extremely Backward Class (EBC), highlighting that no other party has given so many tickets to EBC candidates so far.

Advertisement

The Jan Suraaj Party had earlier released a first list of 51 candidates, where backward and extremely backward communities were given priority. Of these, 49 were first-time candidates, and only two had contested elections previously.

Announcing prominent lawyer Amarkant Jha as the party’s candidate from Bhagalpur, Kishor said that Jha has made significant contributions in securing justice and rehabilitation for Muslims affected by the Bhagalpur riots.

He added, “Amarkant Jha fought legal battles on behalf of hundreds of Muslim families affected by the Bhagalpur riots, free of charge. He helped in their rehabilitation and dedicated his life to helping them restart their lives. Now, he has become a part of the Jan Suraaj Party and will contest from Bhagalpur.”

In a political shake-up, former minister and BJP MLA Ramchandra Sahni quit the BJP and joined the Jan Suraaj Party, delivering a setback to the BJP ahead of the elections.

Prashant Kishor also welcomed senior BJP leader and former minister Ramchandra Sahni from Sugauli, East Champaran, into the party, saying, “There are few public figures in Champaran as respected as Ramchandra Sahni.”

National President Uday Singh said, “Each name was discussed in detail. We hope the people of Bihar will welcome this list.”

Some of the prominent candidates are Dr Shahnawaz Alam from Barharia (Siwan), Abhaykant Jha from Bhagalpur, Neeraj Singh from Sheohar, Lalababu Yadav from Narkatia, Mantosh Sahni from Kalyanpur, Rajiv Ranjan Singh from Sandesh, Azam Anwar Hussain from Bajpatti, Ratneshwar Thakur from Harlakhi, Janardan Yadav from Narpatganj, and Anuja Kumari from Islampur.