Amid reports that Prashant Kishor is likely to work with Chandrababu Naidu’s Telugu Desam Party (TDP) ahead of the 2023 Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh, the poll strategist told TNM that he stands by his decision of not working with political parties as he has quit election management. It was in 2021 that Prashant announced his retirement from political consulting, after working with Trinamool Congress (TMC) for the West Bengal Assembly election. “I cease to be a strategist as I have left that domain in 2021. My focus is Jan Suraaj and what I am doing with it in Bihar,” he told TNM, referring to the political organisation that he now leads.
Prashant began a Jan Suraaj Padyatra (a march on foot) for public outreach in his home state Bihar in October 2022. He has indicated on multiple occasions that the organisation might turn into a political party or support independent candidates contesting elections.
Sources close to Prashant told TNM that while many major politicians across states have continued to reach out to him to work as an election strategist for them, he has remained firm on not working for parties. However, his former colleagues at I-PAC (Indian Political Action Committee) such as Rishi Raj Singh continue to work with political parties, including the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) in Andhra. Another firm called ShowTime Consulting, which is currently working with the TDP, was also founded by Prashant’s former colleague Robbin Sharrma. ShowTime’s director Shantanu Singh has also previously worked with Prashant. This is the second time that I-PAC is working for the YSRCP, with Andhra Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy seeking to be re-elected in 2024, while former CM Naidu is striving to make a comeback.
The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) in Tamil Nadu too had hired Prashant’s I-PAC ahead of the 2021 Tamil Nadu elections. However, Chief Minister MK Stalin’s son-in-law V Sabareesan has since launched the Populus Empowerment Network, a “socio-political research organisation” that is said to be doing similar work based on the experience of working with organisations such as I-PAC.
Most major parties now hire political consultancy firms to help them with electioneering work such as surveys and data analysis that is used to inform their campaign strategy.