In a setback to Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party (JSP), the Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain its plea challenging the 2025 Bihar Assembly Elections.
In its writ petition, Jan Suraaj had alleged large-scale irregularities in last year’s elections in Bihar in which the NDA won, and sought fresh polls.
The Supreme Court, however, today rejected the submission and said it cannot issue an omnibus direction to set aside the entire Bihar Assembly election. It pointed out that such a direction cannot be issued at the instance of a political party which had lost the election.
The apex court bench led by CJI Surya Kant further asked the Kishor-led JSP to approach the Patna High Court with its grievances.
“We can’t issue a notice like this. There is a procedure. It is just a composite election petition. Because you lost the elections, you say set aside the entire election result. What is this view of a political party that has lost everything in the election, then you want to come here. Even that issue (on welfare policies), we won’t like to have a political party before us. It must be some public-spirited person. Because if we entertain this, if this part gets to power, they will do the same thing,” news agency ANI quoted the CJI as saying during the hearing.
In its petition filed under Article 32 of the Constitution, the JSP had argued that the Bihar election was won illegally by the BJP and JD(U)-led NDA by distributing Rs 15,600 crores in cash to voters.
The JSP was referring to the direct transfer of Rs 10,000 to women voters in the state even as the Model Code of Conduct was in force.
It contended that fresh beneficiaries were added to the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana and payments were made while the Model Code was in force.
The plea stated that no new beneficiaries could be added and funds disbursed to them during the election period, in violation of Articles 14, 21, 112, 202, and 324 of the Constitution.
The petition has also raised questions over the deployment of around 1.8 lakh women beneficiaries associated with the self-help group JEEVIKA at polling booths during the two-phase polling, calling the move illegal and unfair.