Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor, who was sitting on an indefinite hunger strike at the Gandhi Maidan in Patna, was arrested by the Bihar police on Monday morning. Mr Kishor was “forcibly” taken to AIIMS in an ambulance and has been isolated from everyone, sources said.

Mr Kishor has reportedly refused treatment and will continue his fast unto death.

In a video shared by the news agency ANI, a large team of Patna police can be seen trying to remove Mr Kishor from the protest site with his fellow protesters trying to hold him. the police also removed other demonstrators from the site.

#WATCH | BPSC protest | Bihar: Patna Police detains Jan Suraaj chief Prashant Kishor who was sitting on an indefinite hunger strike at Gandhi Maidan pic.twitter.com/cOnoM7EGW1

— ANI (@ANI) January 5, 2025

Mr Kishor, who was an election strategist before he plunged into politics full-time, has been on an indefinite strike since January 2 in support of the protesting students to press the demand for the cancellation of the integrated 70th combined (preliminary) competitive test conducted by the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC). The students are demanding the cancellation of the exam due to an alleged paper leak.

The BPSC exam was held on December 13.

The protest site – Gandhi Maidan – is a couple of kilometers from the spot where several candidates have been on a round-the-clock protest for over two weeks.

“I am with these students with all my might… Till this issue is resolved, I’ll be sitting on a fast-unto death. The candidates are protesting in biting cold, braving baton charge by police and water cannons. The Chief Minister is away in Delhi, and having a good time. He did not utter a single word when reporters in the national capital approached him with queries on the stir,” the Jan Suraaj party chief had said.

Earlier, Mr Kishor said that his party would file a petition in the Patna High Court on January 7 regarding the irregularities in the BPSC examination.

“It is not a matter of decision for us whether we will continue this (protest) or not. We will continue doing what we are doing now, there will be no change in it…We (Jan Suraaj Party) will file a petition in the High Court on the 7th,” he said.

‘Vanity Van’ controversy

A controversy erupted on Saturday over a ‘vanity van’, reportedly with many luxury facilities, parked close to Mr Kishor’s protest site. The Jan Suraaj party chief’s rivals pointed at the plush vehicle and questioned him if he was sincere in his protest.

However, Mr Kishor shot back at them, saying that he needed the van to “avoid the press and rivals from making false allegations of breaking the hunger strike if he went home to use the washroom, as they could say he had gone to eat meals”.

“If I don’t go to the bus, people ask if others use the van. Well, if it’s someone else’s house, they can go, they’re not on hunger strike, they can use the bathroom, they can go to the restroom. But I’m on a hunger strike, and if I go home to use the bathroom, journalists will say I went to eat or sleep,” he said.

“Some even said the van costs Rs 4 crore, and rented at a cost of Rs 25 lakh. If that is so, give me that rent. I will use it. How foolish can people be?” Mr Kishor added.

Jan Suraaj chief Prashant Kishor, who is on a fast-unto-death over BPSC question paper leak allegations, addresses the gathering at the Gandhi Maidan, in Patna, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Jan Suraaj chief Prashant Kishor was detained by the Patna Police in the early hours of Monday (January 6, 2024).

He was sitting on an indefinite hunger strike seeking action against the alleged BPSC exam paper leak.

Additionally, Patna Police has vacated the place at Gandhi Maidan where Mr. Kishor was sitting on a fast-unto-death with the protestors. Patna Police also conducted the checking of the vehicles leaving from the Gandhi Maidan. Mr. Kishor was observing a fast-unto-death over BPSC irregularities, launched on January 2 in support of the protesting students, who are demanding a cancellation of the Bihar Public Service Commission exam.

He was taken into an ambulance by the police. Before being detained, the Jan Suraaj chief said that the party would file a petition in the High Court on January 7 over BPSC irregularities. “It is not a matter of decision for us whether we will continue this (protest) or not. We will continue doing what we are doing now, there will be no change in it…We (Jan Suraaj Party) will file a petition in the High Court on the 7th,” said Mr. Kishor.

Earlier on Sunday, Mr. Kishor sat down with protesting students at Gandhi Maidan in Patna. He also urged the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav to lead the protest as he is a “tall” leader and also the Leader of Opposition (LoP). Mr. Kishor was responding to remarks made by the former Bihar Deputy Chief Minister. He stated that Mr. Yadav, being the LoP, should have taken the lead in the protest instead of him.

“He (Tejashwi Yadav) is a tall leader. He is also the LoP. He should have led the protests. I have been telling them to lead the protest. We will step aside. He said that he was coming to Gandhi Maidan with five lakh people. Students (and their issues) should be talked about. Politics can happen whenever. We don’t have any party banner here. We care about the agenda of the students,” the Jan Suraaj founder told reporters. “This is not a dharna. This is the passion of the people of Bihar to better their conditions, to secure a better future. In this cold weather, some are singing and you can see people from across the board sitting here. I am tired of answering accusations. Look around, and spot the vanity van if you can. We will sleep here too,” Mr. Kishor said.

On Saturday (January 4, 2024), Tejashwi Yadav accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of politicising the issue of BPSC protest. Speaking to ANI, he accused the independent movement of students of being politicised and said that these people joining the protest were the B team of the BJP.

“It is being completely politicised. We feel that the people of Bihar will have to recognise these people who are the BJP’s ‘B’ team and are trying to crush this independent movement. This is highly condemnable,” he said. On the controversy surrounding Mr. Kishor’s vanity van, Mr. Yadav stated, “An attempt was made to end the movement. Actors sit in the vanity van and the producer and the director make them sit, we know who is the producer who the director is, and why the actor was made to sit. Everyone knows. “The students are calling for the cancellation of the Integrated Combined (Preliminary) Competitive Examination (CCE) 2024, conducted by the BPSC on December 13, due to alleged question paper leaks.