‘Can Rahul spend one night in Bihar?’: Prashant Kishor slams Congress, says party survives on 'Lalu ji's bheek'

As Bihar heads toward Assembly elections expected later this year, Jan Suraaj Party chief Prashant Kishor launched a direct attack on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, questioning his engagement with the state's people. Kishor challenged Gandhi to prove his grassroots connect by spending one night in a village in Bihar. “Rahul ji keeps coming and going here, but doesn’t really undertake any Yatra. If Rahul Gandhi has ever spent even one night in a village in Bihar, let us know. If he can spend just one night in a village, we'll accept it,” Kishor said.

Addressing Congress’s political presence in Bihar, Kishor claimed the party lacks independent strength and has remained reliant on the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) led by Lalu Prasad Yadav. “Congress has no real existence in Bihar. For the past 25–30 years, it's been a party that just carries Lalu ji's bag. If Rahul Gandhi truly has political strength, let him contest elections in Bihar on his own,” he said. Kishor added that Congress’s performance in the state would depend on “Lalu ji’s charity.”

Kishor also criticised Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy over past remarks about Biharis, stating, “After becoming Chief Minister, he officially stated that doing labour is in the DNA of Biharis. Biharis are born to do labour work. Why did he say this? Because most of his rival KCR's officers had a Bihar background. So he was implying that Telangana is in a bad state because Biharis are running it.” Kishor demanded an apology from Reddy and criticised the Congress for not addressing such comments.

Referencing a 1989 promise by then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, Kishor said a ₹50,000 crore package had been announced for Bihar’s development but questioned the follow-through. “Congress remained in power afterwards, so tell us, what did you do for Bihar?” he asked. Kishor stated that promises made decades ago have not translated into tangible outcomes for the state.

Kishor also commented on Bihar’s economic portrayal and the lack of industrial investment. He stated that Bihar and Uttar Pradesh are seen as labour-producing states and that this perception has led to exploitation of workers in states like Gujarat and Tamil Nadu. “Some parts of Bihar and UP have effectively been reduced to labour-producing hubs,” he said, claiming that setting up industries in Bihar would disrupt this supply of migrant workers.