BJP accuses Jan Suraaj workers of fraudulent voting in Bankipur by-poll
The BJP on Thursday, July 30, alleged that the Jan Suraaj Party workers were "attempting to cast fraudulent votes" in the Bankipur assembly by-poll in Bihar where voting was underway. They urged the Election Commission to strengthen the verification of electors.
BJP state general secretary Nitin Abhishek wrote a letter to the returning officer of the assembly, claiming that such practices undermine the fundamental principles of democracy in the country.
"It has come to our notice that representatives and workers associated with the Jan Suraaj Party are attempting to compromise the integrity of the polling process by attempting to cast fraudulent/fake votes in the Bankipur by-poll," the BJP said in the letter.
Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor, who is making an electoral debut in the by-election countered such allegation by claiming that the BJP has done "something constructive for the first time by urging the Election Commission to conduct strict scrutiny of EPIC cards to curb fake voting".
Kishor who is a former poll strategist has emerged as a principal challenger to the BJP, which has never lost the Bankipur seat since 1995 when it was known as Patna West.
Nitin Nabin, president of BJP's state unit, had won this assembly seat for the fifth time in a row last November. He beat his closest competitor, Rekha Gupta of the RJD (who was contesting from the same party again), by a margin of more than 50,000 votes. In April 2026, Nabin gave up this assembly seat after he was elected to the Rajya Sabha.
For this seat the BJP has now picked Neeraj Kumar Sinha, a lesser-known leader from its youth wing.
"To prevent any electoral malpractice and safeguard the voting process, we strongly request the Election Commission and polling officials to strictly enforce verification protocols," Abhishek said.
He demanded that every voter must be mandated to present their original electoral photo identity (EPIC) card and their identities be meticulously matched against the official voters' list before being allowed to exercise their franchise.
Around 11.5 % voter turnout was recorded till 11 am on Thursday, July 30, in the Bankipur assembly by-election in Bihar.
According to a statement issued by Patna district administration, eight super zonal magistrates, 16 zonal magistrates and 42 sector magistrates have been deployed to ensure free, fair and peaceful voting.
Additional forces are stationed in sensitive areas and officials have been directed to verify suspicious voter identity cards by scanning QR codes through the Election Commission app and register FIRs in cases of fake IDs, as per the statement issued by the Patna district administration.
Supporters of the BJP and Jan Suraaj were seen engaging in altercations in at least three booths while the police had to intervene to bring the situation under control.