Supreme Court refuses to entertain Jan Suraaj Party’s plea challenging 2025 Bihar Assembly elections

The Supreme Court on Friday (February 6, 2026) heard a plea by the Jan Suraaj Party (JSP), which had accused the Bihar Government of violating the Model Code by transferring ₹10,000 each to women under the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana after the announcement of the 2025 Assembly poll schedule.

The JSP withdrew their petition from the Supreme Court, which allowed it to move the Patna High Court with its grievances.

The court said that it cannot issue an omnibus direction to set aside the entire Bihar Assembly election, that too at the insistance of a political party.

The court said that it is “seriously viewing the culture of irrational freebies before elections, but casts doubt on the bona fide of the Jan Suraaj Party, which has just lost the Assembly polls”.

Chief Justice of India Surya Kant said that the party failed in the elections, only to now use the judicial platform.

The JSP had earlier termed it as a “misuse of a State welfare scheme to influence voters ahead of the 2025 Assembly elections”.

The party, founded by former poll strategist Prashant Kishor, was referring to the scheme, Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojna, launched by the ruling NDA Government in the State, under which ₹ 10,000 was directly transferred to one woman in every family, with a further promise of ₹ 2 lakh after assessment for their “self-employment”.

(with inputs from PTI)