‘Operation Lotus’ Successful - BJP Wins Five, JDS Three, Congress Zero
Daijiworld Media Network—Mangalore (TU/CN)
Bangalore, Dec 30: The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday December 30 won a stunning landslide victory in five assembly constituencies of the eight where by-elections were held in the state on Saturday December 27. Though the Janata Dal (S) managed to bag three seats, the Congress party failed to muster even a single victory.
BJP winners
BJP minister Umesh Katti won from Hukkeri, while Balachandra Jarkiholi won Arabhavi. Anand Asnotikar emerged victorious in Karavar and Shivanagouda Naik in Devadurga. Katti won by a margin of over 67,000 votes while Jarkiholi won by 30,000 votes. Asnotikar and Naik had a winning margin of 16,000 votes each.
J Narashimha Swamy is the fifth winning candidate of the ruling party and he secured Doddaballapura. The result of Turuvakere constituency has been withheld but sources confirmed that JD(S) candidate M T Krishnappa has won the seat by over 1,000 votes against BJP candidate M D Lakshminarayana.
JDS winners
In Madhugiri Anita Kumaraswamy, wife of former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy has won by 3200 votes against congress candidate, surprisingly BJP candidate, minister C Chennigappa pushed into third position.
Meanwhile JD (S) candidate Kalpana Siddaraju won from Maddhur assembly constituency.
The by-polls were a prestige issue for the BJP as it had included four ‘defectors’ in its ministry and all of them contested as the party’s candidates. Around 74 percent of nearly 1.3-million voters exercised their franchises on Saturday. Counting of votes in the eight assembly seats began at 8 am in the respective district headquarters on Tuesday.
The BJP had won 110 seats in the May assembly polls; three short of a majority. But it formed its first government in south India with the support of six independents. Five of them were then made ministers.
Seven of the eight by-elections were held after three Congress and four JD-S legislators resigned from the assembly to join the BJP as part of ‘Operation Lotus’ launched by the ruling party. The eighth by-poll was held following the death of JD-S legislator M S Siddaraju in Maddur.
The campaign was marred by attempts to distribute money, liquor, and other inducements to voters. According to state chief electoral officer M N Vidyashankar, Rs.3.2 million in cash and liquor worth Rs.12 million, intended for distribution among voters had been seized from the constituencies ahead of the elections.