Once hailed as the political strategist par excellence, everyone was convinced that Prashant Kishor had the Midas touch. After all he was one of the main men behind Modi’s 2012 Gujarat election campaign and the much publicized 2014 general elections.
Later in 2015 there were reports that Kishor was going to switch sides to the JD(U) amid claims that differences had started to crop-up between him and the senior BJP leaders. Even after this switch, his golden run continued with a surprise victory in Bihar elections for the JD(U) Mahagathbandhan. Apart from being Nitish Kumar’s Chief Strategist he also subsequently helped him select cabinet ministers for his government.
By now Kishor was a brand on his own who could do no wrong. Apart from the media coverage, he also made efforts to build his own image and persona which is very evident from a simple google search of his name.
The Congress, desperate to win the upcoming UP and Punjab elections, led to them turning to Kishor. While he was given a free hand to run the UP election campaign, in Punjab Amarinder kept him at a distance. The debacle of the Congress – SP coalition in UP was for everyone to see. Congress was reduced to single digits after winning only 7 out of 105 seats contested.
This miffed party-workers to no end as they claimed to have blindly followed all of Kishor’s instructions. Later what added insult to injury was that, post election results Kishor was untraceable. His no show made him face the ire of these workers who put up Prashant Kishor missing posters and also promised a reward of Rs 5 lakh for whoever found him.
Now according to this report, things might not be going too well for Kishor. Even though state elections in 8 states are coming up, Prashant “the hen that laid the golden egg” Kishor isn’t buzzing in the news.
In July there were reports that he had been hired by Jaganmohan Reddy for the next Andhra Pradesh election campaign but days later Indian Political Action Committee led by Prashant Kishor had clarified their current situation:
As things stand, I-PAC is currently engaged only with YSRCP in AP 1/3
— I-PAC (@IndianPAC) July 10, 2017
All news regarding TN and/or other states is purely speculative. If and when we take up other work, we shall formally confirm the same 2/3
— I-PAC (@IndianPAC) July 10, 2017
Till date the twitter account hasn’t confirmed news of them taking up any other work.
What furthers the rumours that Kishor may not be the number one guy for the Congress is that the party is now in talks with big data firm Cambridge Analytica which has in the past been involved in high profile campaigns like Donald Trump’s Presidential campaign and the Brexit. As per the reports, the company has created a data-driven strategy to target voters on social media by analysing online user behaviour and different citizen databases.
It also has suggested that the Congress should build the momentum for 2019 lok sabha polls via assembly elections in Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. It is unclear where Prashant Kishor stands in the whole scenario and only time will tell what the future holds for him. On the social media campaign front at least, it appears a new “star” has caught the eye of the media, inspite of many goof ups.
