BJP's Bankipur Defeat Not on Agenda as Nitish Kumar Meets PM Modi

New Delhi: A day after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lost the Bankipur Assembly by-election in Patna, Janata Dal-United (JD-U) leader and former Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday (August 4, 2026). The meeting at the Prime Minister’s official residence was described by Mr. Kumar as a “courtesy call”.

Mr. Kumar, who now represents his party in the Rajya Sabha, was accompanied by two senior JD-U leaders — Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Kumar Jha, who also serves as the party’s national working president. The Prime Minister’s Office released photographs of the leaders on social media. The images showed the leaders seated together, and the accompanying post confirmed the meeting but did not provide any details.

This was the first formal meeting between Mr. Kumar and PM Modi after Mr. Kumar was elected to the Upper House of Parliament. Mr. Kumar, who has served as Bihar’s Chief Minister ten times, resigned from the post in April. Following his resignation, BJP leader Samrat Chaudhary took over as Chief Minister, becoming the first BJP leader to hold the office in Bihar. The JD-U and the BJP are currently partners in the state government and also constitute the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) at the Centre.

According to a senior JD-U leader, the Bankipur bypoll result did not come up for discussion. “The conversation was focused on the development projects underway in the state,” the leader said on condition of anonymity. The leader added that the Prime Minister was updated on the progress of infrastructure and welfare initiatives in Bihar.

The Bankipur by-election was the first electoral contest in Bihar after the political changes in April. The BJP lost the seat, a development that has drawn attention given the recent reconfiguration of the state government. There has been no official word from either party on the result, and the coalition remains functional.

Mr. Kumar, a veteran politician, has been a key force in Bihar politics for decades. He has held the Chief Minister’s post multiple times and has historically switched alliances between various political groupings. His decision to leave the previous coalition and rejoin the NDA in April led to the formation of the current government. After stepping down, he was elected to the Rajya Sabha, marking a new phase in his career.

The JD-U, under Mr. Kumar’s leadership, has been a significant regional party with a strong presence in Bihar’s politics. It holds a sizeable number of seats in the Bihar Legislative Assembly and has MPs in both houses of Parliament. Mr. Kumar has often emphasised the need for greater central assistance to Bihar, and his meetings with central leaders are closely watched for signals on policy and alliance dynamics.

The meeting takes place at a time when the NDA government at the Centre is focusing on infrastructure and rural development. Bihar, being one of the less urbanised states, is a recipient of several central schemes. The interaction between Mr. Kumar and PM Modi, though brief, is expected to have touched upon these themes. No further details of the meeting were released by either the Prime Minister’s Office or the JD-U.