A win for the Congress in Karnataka's Jayanagar assembly seat
Congress party workers started celebrating and bursting crackers when early results indicated a Congress win at the elections in Karnataka\'s Jayanagar on Monday.
NEW DELHI: Congress party workers started celebrating and bursting crackers when early results indicated a Congress win at the elections in Karnataka's Jayanagar on Monday.
Due to the death of a candidate, the elections in Karnataka's Jayanagar were deferred last month and held this week. A Congress candidate won by 2,889 votes after 16 rounds of counting. The Congress now has 80 seats in the Karnataka assembly. The Congress candidate Sowmya Reddy said that support had come in for her even from rival parties.
Sowmya Reddy is a daughter of state minister Ramalinga Reddy, who has represented Jayanagar four times previously. He said that he expected the victory margin to be higher, but he added that he wasn't disappointed.
“I was a winner from Jayanagar four times previously and had shifted from the adjoining constituency to BTM Layout, as it includes my home area. Had I contested from the same constituency the previous two times, would have won from there. This time the party high command had given an opportunity to my daughter, I thank them. I had expected the victory margin to be a lot higher but I am not disappointed. It is a victory,” said Ramalinga.
After the JD(S) withdrew its candidate to support the Congress, curiosity about the outcome of the Jayanagar poll is high.
The candidate who died last month was the BJP's B N Vijayakumar, who was also the sitting MLA from the constituency. The BJP set his brother B N Prahlad Babu up, and his main rival was the Congress party's Reddy. A total of 19 candidates contested.
The assembly segment recorded 55% voter turnout, which is more people than usual in Jayanagar."We are pleased with the way the polls went off. Jayanagar doesn't always put up a good show in terms of numbers, but this time a large number of people, who don't usually vote, seem to have exercised their franchise," said D B Natesh, assistant commissioner (elections), after voting concluded on Monday.
The death of the BJP candidate and the subsequent countermanding had had a definite impact on the electorate."Compared to the previous times I have voted, I can see more people at the booths this time," said who had come from Jayamahal Extension. "Since this election is being held after the state government has been formed, I believe many of the electorate have woken up and given more thought to who they are going to vote. I have been more introspective as well."
