A deep irony underlies poll consultant Prashant Kishor’s sharp criticism of the Citizenship Amendment Act.

Three of his prominent former clients — Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar and Andhra Pradesh chief minister Jagan Mohan Reddy — have turned pushers and enablers of the contentious law.

Kishor’s current aggressive stand against the amended law is in consonance with that of his current client, Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee.

It’s also in line with the stated position of Delhi chief minister and Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal, the latest client of Kishor. Kishor is also set to use his professional skills to assist the DMK in Tamil Nadu, yet another party firmly opposed to the CAA.

Kishor, however, had made a name for himself by working with a party that is the chief architect of the contentious law. Kishor and his I-PAC (Indian Political Action Committee) catapulted to prominence in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls that pitchforked Modi to power at the Centre. Then, Kishor was Modi’s chief election strategist and pushed the BJP’s manifesto that promised to bring the deeply divisive citizenship bill.

Now Kishor not only is opposing the law pushed by his first and foremost client but also seems to be giving a clarion call to powerful anti-BJP leaders to defy the central government. “The majority prevailed in Parliament. Now beyond judiciary, the task of saving the soul of India is on 16 Non-BJP CMs as it is the states who have to operationalise these acts. 3 CMs (Punjab/Kerala/WB) have said NO to #CAB and #NRC. Time for others to make their stand clear,” Kishor tweeted.

Last Monday was the first time Kishor had come out against the citizenship bill. His target was the JDU and its chief Nitish Kumar.

“Disappointed to see JDU supporting #CAB that discriminates right of citizenship on the basis of religion. It’s incongruous with the party’s constitution that carries the word secular thrice on the very first page and the leadership that is supposedly guided by Gandhian ideals,” Kishor tweeted on December 9.

Kishor’s opposition caught attention because he did so while being a vice-president of the JDU.

With his prominent former clients favouring the law, Kishor seems to be projecting himself as a conscientious citizen trying to take up cudgels against the law that is being perceived as deeply divisive.