Bengaluru, Oct 27 (PTI) In a setback to the ruling Congress in Karnataka, the JD(S) on Tuesday wrested the Bengaluru Teachers’ Constituency from the party, while its alliance partner, the BJP, registered victory in one and was leading in the other two Legislative Council segments that went to polls, according to officials.
The BJP won the North-East Teachers’ constituency, and was leading in the South-East Graduates’ and West Graduates’ constituencies, where counting of votes is still underway, as per the latest update.
All the four MLC seats went to polls on October 23.
In the Bengaluru Teachers’ Constituency, JD(S) candidate A P Ranganath, backed by the BJP, defeated sitting Congress MLC Puttanna, who sought re-election, by a margin of 908 votes. Ranganath secured 10,810 votes against Puttanna’s 9,902, a press release said.
In the North-East Teachers’ Constituency, BJP’s sitting MLC Shashil G Namoshi, who sought re-election, defeated Congress candidate Sharanappa Mattur, officials said.
This is his fifth victory from the segment, which covers Kalaburagi, the home turf of AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge and neighbouring districts of Kalyana Karnataka region, according to party sources.
In the South-East Graduates’ Constituency, BJP candidate K M Suresh was leading against Congress nominee Shashi Hulikunte Mutt, and in the West Graduates’ Constituency, incumbent BJP MLC S V Sankanur was ahead of Congress’ Mohan Limbikai, officials said, citing the latest update.
The contest was seen as a test of coordination between the BJP and JD(S), which are alliance partners, as well as the Congress’s support base among teachers and graduates.
The BJP was on course to retain three of the seats it held, if the trends continued, while the JD(S) succeeded in wresting the Bengaluru Teachers’ Constituency from the Congress.
The Bengaluru contest was significant as Puttanna had switched from the JD(S) to the Congress ahead of the previous Assembly elections. Both Puttanna and Ranganath belong to the Vokkaliga community.
The election was also seen whether the two Opposition alliance partners could transfer their support to each other’s candidates.
The Congress had sought to retain its lone seat and make gains in the other constituencies. Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee working president B K Hariprasad, ministers and senior party leaders campaigned across the constituencies.
Though the results were not expected to affect the stability of the state government, a strong showing by the Opposition alliance would provide it with political ammunition against the Congress government, which came to power in 2023.
The 75-member Legislative Council currently has 38 Congress members, 24 from the BJP, six from the JD(S), one Independent and Chairman Saleem Ahmed. Five seats earmarked for government nominations are vacant.
The Congress is expected to increase its strength when the vacancies are filled, limiting the impact of the election results on the overall balance of power in the House.
(PTI News)
