From the Urdu Press: ‘Prashant Kishor’s win can be a game changer in Bihar, puts BJP, Oppn on notice’

Highlighting Prashant Kishor’s resounding win in Nitin Nabin’s bastion in the Bankipur constituency, the Patna-based Qaumi Tanzem, in its August 4 editorial, says that there were signs of this upset all along, but no one was ready to believe it. Kishor has scripted history by wresting the seat from the BJP which never lost it since 1995, it notes. “The BJP was so certain of a win in the Bankipur bypoll that it fielded a little-known candidate Neeraj Kumar under its hubris that it will clinch the seat regardless of its candidate, missing the point that people are not cattle who could be herded in any directions,” it says. “The entire NDA went all out to ensure Neeraj’s victory. But, eventually, even a large section of the BJP’s core upper caste voters shifted in favour of Kishor. There was also discontent among people in the wake of the Jantar Mantar agitation of students and youths.”

The edit states that the principal Opposition RJD also took its Muslim-Yadav base for granted, fielding the same candidate, Rekha Gupta, who had lost from the seat just eight months ago in the state Assembly election. “The RJD candidate finished a distant third, which indicates that while Yadavs were unenthused, the Muslim voters found in Kishor a better alternative,” it says. The Bankipur bypoll marked the first election the NDA faced after BJP leader Samrat Choudhary succeeded Nitish Kumar as the Chief Minister, it notes. “The change of guard just a few months after people voted in Nitish’s name in the Assembly elections was among key reasons that led to the BJP’s loss. There has also been resentment in a BJP section against Choudhary’s elevation.”

However, the decisive factor in the bypoll was Kishor’s candidature, who managed to convince the youths that he was making efforts to bring a “positive change” in Bihar, the daily says. An educated politician, Kishor has been raising real issues, such as education, jobs and public rights, which have created resonance among many people who have got tired of parties’ empty slogans, the edit says. “Kishor’s entry into the Bihar Assembly would impact its proceedings. This could also be a pointer that the winds of change may start blowing in Bihar politics in the coming days.”

SIASAT

Flagging the situation arising out of the student protests at Jantar Mantar against the exam paper leaks and a broken education system that led to the resignation of Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan, the Hyderabad-based Siasat, in its August 2 leader, points out that youths are vital demographic for any country as they shape its future. The over month-long Jantar Mantar agitation led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) demonstrated youth power as it forced the Narendra Modi government to ease out Pradhan from his post, the editorial says. “As per the agreement made by the government and the CJP, which brought curtains on the student protests, no police action would be taken against the protesters in Delhi and other states. However, FIRs were filed against them in different BJP-ruled states. Following the CJP’s pushback, these cases were later withdrawn by the states.”

In a remarkable development now, PM Modi has taken to Instagram reels to connect with students and youths, the daily notes. “This highlights the importance of youths. The BJP dispensation may have sensed discontent in a section of youths. This explains why Modi has mounted a direct outreach to the young, addressing them as his friends,” it says.

The editorial points out that amid the police cases over alleged derogatory social media posts about him during the Jantar Mantar protest, PM Modi, in a video message, also said that he wanted to forgive all those children who had hurled abuses at him. “However, despite the PM’s message, several youths have been slapped with cases and facing online trolling and threats. Their harassment must be stopped. Youths are watching whether words would be reflected in action,” it adds.

AAG

Referring to Parliament’s approval of the Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026, which criminalises disruption or prevention of the singing of the national song Vande Mataram, thereby placing it at par with the national anthem Jana Gana Mana, the Lucknow-based Aag, in its August 1 editorial, writes that this has triggered a new debate in social, political and legal circles. “For any country, its national symbols, songs and expression of patriotism are of extraordinary significance. However, in a multi-religious, multi-cultural and secular country like India, it is imperative to take into account the rights and sentiments of all sections, especially the minorities, during the lawmaking process,” it says. The objections to the Vande Mataram Bill raised by several Opposition parties and Muslim organisations should not be seen as just “political opposition” but as something rooted in history, India’s Constitution and religious freedom.

The editorial points out that Vande Mataram, composed by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay in 1875 and included later in his novel Anandamath, had emerged as a rallying song during India’s freedom struggle, but Muslims had reservations about its latter stanzas likening Mother India to Hindu goddesses since such an imagery violates the fundamental Islamic tenet of monotheism. “This is in view of such sensitivities that the Congress Working Committee meeting held in Calcutta (now Kolkata) in 1937, in the presence of Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhash Chandra Bose, resolved that when Vande Mataram is sung at national gatherings, only the first two stanzas should be sung,” the edit notes. “After Independence, on January 24, 1950, when the Constituent Assembly met for the last time under the chairmanship of Rajendra Prasad, it accorded Vande Mataram’s first two stanzas a status equivalent to the national anthem.”

The daily writes that India’s Constitution is among the world’s best because it gives, among other fundamental rights, the right to freedom of religion without any discrimination under Article 25 while also protecting the educational and cultural rights of the minorities under Articles 29 and 30. “So when Parliament passes any legislation that conflicts with the religious beliefs of any community, it raises a question mark over the basic structure of the Constitution and its secular doctrine. In its landmark Bijoe Emmanuel & Ors v. State of Kerala judgment of 1986, the Supreme Court had even upheld the right to respectful silence in the singing of the national anthem,” it states.

It is incumbent on the government not to give rise to any division in society through legal coercion in implementation of such a legislation, says the editorial. “India’s greatness lies in its diversity rather than uniformity. A democracy combines respect for the majority with upholding trust of the minorities,” it states. “The ruling dispensation must rise above narrow political considerations for the sake of the country’s larger interest. It should strike a balance between patriotism and faith, rather than making them rivals. This will strengthen the country internally while sending a powerful message to the world.”