Daijiworld Media Network – Beltangady (SP)

Beltangady, Apr 7: The election to the post of the president of the local taluk panchayat, which had aroused curiosity because of some last minute developments, concluded on Tuesday April 6, with T J Joy of the Congress Party, getting elected by defeating the dissident candidate, Jattanna Gowda.

Out of the 24 seats in the taluk panchayat, the equations were changed after a BJP member resigned. The Congress Party members thereafter, had forced Vijaykumar, a JDS member supported by the BJP, to step down by moving a no-confidence motion against him. Puttur assistant commissioner, Dr Harish Kumar, acted as returning officer for the election held for the vacant post on Tuesday.

The Congress Party, with membership strength of 12, was confident of victory. However, one of its senior members, Jattanna Gowda, representing Kokkada constituency, emerged as a dissident candidate. Although Chandu L of the Congress and Prabhakar Shetty of the BJP initially filed their nominations, they withdrew the same later and pledged their support to the Congress dissident candidate, Jattanna Gowda.

Pushed to the corner, the Congress Party played its cards well. When the returning officer asked the members to elect the president through show of hands, Sukumaran of the JDS supported the Congress candidate, and paved way for his elevation to the post of the president. Jattanna Gowda could muster 11 as against T J Joy’s 12. The BJP’s plans to undermine the strategies of the Congress failed to work.