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In a significant political development before the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections, which are scheduled for later this year, Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor on Monday named former BJP MP Uday Singh as its first national president, as per the PTI.

In another development, according to a report by India Today, two of CM Nitish Kumar's once-trusted aides, who had turned against one another, bureaucrat-turned-politician Ramchandra Prasad Singh (RCP), joined hands with poll strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor (PK).

The reunion of the bureaucrat-turned-politician and the poll strategist-turned-politician could bring trouble for the Bihar CM Nitish Kumar during the state Assembly elections. Former Union minister RCP Singh merged his newly formed 'Aap Sabki Awaaz Party (ASAP)' with the Jan Suraaj Party of Prashant Kishor on Sunday.

RCP Singh, like Nitish Kumar, is a Kurmi and hails from Nalanda district. Experts say that merging the ASAP with Jan Suraaj might impact the Bihar CM and his JD(U) in southern Bihar.

Unease Over Potential Alliance

Experts emphasised that their merger could impact the Bihar CM and his JD(U) in southern Bihar, as RCP Singh and Nitish Kumar, both are from the Kurmi caste and hail from Nalanda district.

Signs of unease over the potential alliance between Prashant Kishor and RCP Singh surfaced on the evening of May 18, when government authorities reportedly moved to stop Kishor from entering Nitish Kumar’s ancestral village in Nalanda district.

The formal announcement of the party merger on Sunday saw Kishor in attendance, where he referred to Singh as “an elder brother” and commended his deep insight into Bihar’s political and social landscape.

RCP Singh, who was a former associate of Nitish Kumar had also served as the national president of JD(U). He has played a key role in the party organisation before falling in 2022. Following the fall out of the party, Singh labeled Nitish Kumar as "palti maar".

After exiting JD(U), Singh joined the BJP in May 2023. However, feeling sidelined and dissatisfied with the lack of significant roles, especially as Nitish Kumar rejoined the BJP-led NDA, he went on to establish his own party, Aap Sabki Awaaz.

Now, just half a year later, Singh has merged his Aap Sabki Awaaz Party with Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party, which Kishor had launched after distancing himself from Nitish following a long association.