PATNA, July 22 -- Escalating the political battle ahead of the July 30 Bankipur by-election, the BJP has approached Election Commission, seeking a probe into the alleged source of funds behind Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor's election campaign, demanding that Enforcement Directorate investigate the money trail of companies allegedly financing it. A BJP delegation submitted a memorandum to the EC through the chief electoral officer in Patna, alleging that Prashant Kishor (PK) had grossly exceeded the Rs.40 lakh expenditure ceiling prescribed for assembly elections and was using shell companies and a network of fake social media accounts to influence voters. The delegation comprised minister Mithilesh Tiwari, BJP MLA Jibesh Mishra, legislative council chief whip Janak Ram, state media in-charge Danish Iqbal and election commission cell convener Rakesh Thakur. Addressing a press conference after meeting the poll panel, senior BJP leader and former Union minister Syed Shahnawaz Hussain alleged that Kishor's campaign expenditure had crossed "several crores of rupees", far exceeding the EC's prescribed limit of Rs.40 lakh. "Every citizen has the right to contest elections, but everyone must abide by the Election Commission's rules. We have submitted documentary evidence to the Commission indicating that Prashant Kishor has spent far beyond the permissible limit," Hussain said. The BJP alleged Kishor was concealing election expenditure through multiple companies engaged in large-scale social media campaigning. It claimed that influencers were being paid through fake social media accounts and bot networks to create an artificial online narrative in favour of Kishor. Hussain further alleged that entities such as Simple Sense Analytics Private Limited and News Lighthouse LLP were involved in managing the campaign and appeared to have links with Kishor. The party urged the EC to conduct a thorough investigation and sought an ED probe into the alleged source of funds and money trail behind the campaign. Education minister Mithilesh Tiwari alleged that the BJP had furnished details of several social media accounts operating from locations outside India, claiming they were being used to influence Bihar's political discourse and target political leaders through coordinated online campaigns. He urged the EC to take strict action to ensure free and fair elections. MLA Jibesh Mishra alleged that Kishor had violated provisions of the Representation of the People Act relating to election expenditure and said the BJP had submitted all relevant documents to the Commission. Janak Ram accused Kishor's campaign of attempting to mislead voters through "external funding and social media propaganda", asserting that the electorate would respond democratically in favour of development and good governance. Replying to a question on whether the BJP was worried about the Bankipur by-election in view of PK's candidature, Hussain said the Jan Suraaj founder was "actually contesting with the RJD for the second position." "There is no doubt about the BJP retaining the seat. The only question is the victory margin. Our candidate, Neeraj Kumar Sinha, should win by a bigger margin than that secured by our national president Nitin Nabin in the November 2025 assembly election," he said. JSP spokesperson Tarique Anwar Champarni dismissed them as "baseless", claiming they reflected BJP's "frustration and fear" of losing the prestigious Bankipur seat, previously represented by its national president Nitin Nabin. "The BJP is cornered and knows it is losing the seat," he said. Champarni also questioned how BJP obtained details of the Party's election expenditure, arguing such information was confidential and submitted only to the EC....