Poll strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor on Tuesday claimed that Bihar Chief Minister had offered to “work for him again”, which he refused. 

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Speaking on the third day of his ‘Jan Suraaj Yatra’, Kishor said he refused, saying he was committed to undertaking the 3,500-km padyatra and creating such “jan bal (power of the people)” against which no power could stand.

“After Nitish Kumar faced losses in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, he had sought my help. I joined hands with him for the 2015 Assembly win. Ten-fifteen days ago, he called me to make an offer to work for him again. I said it was not possible now as I was committed to undertaking a 3,500 km padyatra. Once jan bal arises, one can take it from me that nothing can stand against it,” Kishor said while speaking at Jamunai village in West Champaran. 

Kishor was referring to his recent meeting with Kumar in Patna. The meeting, which came after a lot of mudslinging between the two, led to a lot of speculations. However, what transpired at the meeting has not been revealed yet. 

Earlier, Kumar’s JD(U) alleged that its former national vice president Kishor was working “on behalf of the BJP” and questioned the source of funding for his much publicised 'Jan Suraaj' campaign.

JD(U) president Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan also berated Kishor's statewide "pada yatra" and fulminated against his refrain that Bihar remains a laggard despite over a decade of Kumar's claim of good governance.

"The people of Bihar know how much progress there has been under Nitish Kumar's rule. We do not need a certificate from Prashant Kishor. Though like any other citizen he is free to take out a march or a demonstration," the JD(U) chief told reporters on Monday.

An enigmatic figure who has worked with politicians of all hues, Prashant Kishor, who hails from Buxar district of Bihar, now claims to have given up professional political consultancy and devoted himself fully to transforming his home state through mass mobilisation.

His move, however, is viewed with skepticism by the state's hard-nosed politicians who view the IPAC founder as a mercenary.

The JD(U)'s comment comes a day after state BJP spokesperson Nikhil Anand issued a statement, calling Kishor a "political middleman" who had a "tacit understanding" with Nitish Kumar.

Notably, Kishor's first claim to fame was his handling of Narendra Modi's spectacularly successful campaign of the 2014 Lok Sabha polls which saw the BJP winning a majority for the first time.

A year later, he helped the Grand Alliance of JD(U), Lalu Prasad's RJD and Congress pull off a stunning victory in Bihar assembly polls, bringing the BJP juggernaut to a halt.