Daijiworld Media Network – Bengaluru 

Bengaluru, Dec 9 (IANS): In a near sweep, a resurgent Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 12 seats, while the Congress only 2 and the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) faced total rout in Karnataka's by-elections for 15 seats held on December 5, an official said on Monday.

"Of all the results declared for 15 Assembly seats, the BJP won 12, Congress 2, while the JD-S drew a blank," poll official G. Jadiyappa told IANS here.

An Independent, backed by the JD-S, won Hosakote in Bengaluru Rural district.

The BJP won Athani, Kagwad, Gokak, Yellapur, Hirekerur, Ranibennur, Vijayanagara, Chikkaballapur, K.R. Pura, Yeshvanthpur, Mahalakshmi Layout and Krishnarajapete.

The Congress won Hunasur in Mysuru district and Shivajinagara in Bengaluru central.

As the ruling BJP needed only 7 seats in the 223-member Assembly for a simple majority with 112 as the halfway mark, the 4-month-old BJP government will continue in office for over 3 years till the 5-year term of the present Assembly lapses in May 2023.

The BJP secured 50.3 per cent of the total votes polled, the Congress 31.3 per cent and the JD-S 12.1 per cent respectively in the 15 Assembly segments.

The BJP fielded 11 Congress and 3 JD-S defectors to wrest the seats from both the opposition parties.

The Congress won 2 of the 15 seats it contested while the JD-S lost in all the 12 seats it contested across the state.

Independent Sharat Kumar Bachegowda won the high-profile Hosakote seat against the BJP's M.T.B. Nagaraj, who declared assets worth Rs 1,230 crore in his poll affidavit.

Nagaraj is a Congress defector, while Bachegowda is a BJP rebel whom the party expelled for not withdrawing from the crucial battle at the hustings as an Independent.

JD-S did not field its candidate in Hosakote but supported Bachegowda, who is the son of BJP's Lok Sabha member from Chikkaballapur B.N. Bache Gowda.

Earlier report

Bengaluru, Dec 9 (IANS): The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is heading for a simple majority in the 223-member Karnataka Assembly, as it surged ahead in 12 of the 15 constituencies where vote count is underway for the December 5 bypolls since 8.00 a.m., a party official said on Monday.

"Our party is ahead of the opposition Congress in a dozen seats and trailing behind it only in two seats and an Independent in one seat after 10 rounds of vote count in all the 15 Assembly segments," BJP's state unit spokesman G. Madusudhan told IANS here.

BJP workers celebating

BJP celebrating in Mangaluru

With 104 members excluding the Speaker and the support of an Independent, the ruling party has 105 seats in the Assembly, including one nominated from the Anglo-Indian community with voting rights.

"Our party's strength alone will go up to 116, excluding the Speaker and 117 with the Independent, which will be 5 above the simple majority of 112 in the 223-member Assembly, with 2 seats vacant.

Bye-elections in two Assembly seats Muski in Raichur district and R. R. Nagar in Bengaluru southwest were not held, as a litigation on its results from the 2018 Assembly elections is pending in the Karnataka High Court.

Though Chief Minister B. S. Yediyurappa formed the government for the third time on May 17, 2018 with 105 members, he resigned on May 19 after he failed to secure eight eight seats required for the simple majority with 113 as the halfway mark then.

Yediyurappa, however, returned to power for the fourth time in the southern state, on July 26 after the 14-month-old JD-S Coalition government fell on July 23.

As the 5-year tenure of the present Assembly lasts till May 2023, the BJP can remain in the office for the remaining over three years.

Live Updates:

1.45 pm - Congress has won two seats and an independent candidate wins one.

1.35 pm - The BJP wins all 12 constituencies.

12.53 pm - Congress leader Rizwan Arshad wins in Bengaluru's Shivajinagar. 

12.50 pm - BJP's Ramesh Jarakiholi wins from Gokak constituency. 

12.35 pm - BJP has won Athani, Yellapur, Kagwad, Chikkaballapur, Krishnarajapura, Hirekerur, Ranebennur, Krishanrajpur, Mahalakshmi Layout and Gokak.

12.10 pm - KR Pet BJP candidate Narayana Gowda wins.

12.00 pm - Athani, inround 7 of vote counting, BJP's Mahesh Kumathalli leads.

11.55 am - In Gokak, atround 9 of counting, BJP's Ramesh Jarkiholi leads.

11.51 am - BJP candidatecontinued their leads in Athani, Kagwad and Gokak assembly constituencies.

11. 45 am - Chief minister B S Yediyurappa celebrates with his son BY Vijayendra as BJP leads on 12 out of 15 seats in the Karnataka bypolls. 

11.19 am - Shivram Hebbar (BJP) wins by about 31,000 votes in Yellapur.

10.28 am - Remesh Jarkiholi (BJP) from Gokak leads. Most likely to win.

10.06 am - Narayana Gowda (BJP) leads in K R Pete.

10.05 am - Javarai Gowda (JDS) leads in Yashwanthpur.

10.04 am - Shivram Hebbar (BJP) leads by about 20,000 votes in Yellapur. Most likely to win.

9.30 am - Manjunath (Congress) leads in Hunsur.

9.19 am - Anand Singh (BJP) leads in Vijayanagara.

9.17 am - Sreemanth Patil (BJP) leads in Kagawada. 

9.15 am - Ramesh Kumtahalli (BJP) leads in Athani.

9.06 am - Arun Kumar (BJP) in Ranebennur leads.

9.03 am - B C Patil (BJP) in Hirekerur leads.

9.02 am - Gopalayya (BJP) in Mahalaxmi Layout leads.

9.01 am - K R Puram - Bairathi Basavaraju (BJP) leads.

8.49 am - Kagawada, BJP leads.

8.47 am - Rizwan Ahmed (Congress) leads in Shivajinagara.

8.45 am - Sharath Bachche Gowda (Ind) leads.

8.42 am - Dr Sudhakar (BJP) leads in Chikkaballapur.

8.40 am - Yallapur - Shivaram Hebbar from BJP leads.

8.37 am - Some tension in Hoskote- counting delayed.

8.35 am - JD(S) is leading by 1,312 votes in the second round of counting in K R Pet.

8.27 am - Remesh Jarkiholi (BJP) from Gokak leading.

8.22 am- Hunsur - A H Vishwanath (BJP) is leading.

8.20 am - After the first round of counting in K R Pet,JD(S) candidateBL Devaraj is leading.

8.04 am - The postal ballots are being sorted by the poll officials. The Election Commission officials say that the postal ballots will be counted before 9 am. 

6.51 am - Security beefed up at counting centres.

Bengaluru police have beefed up security ahead of counting of the votes polled in the recent bye-elections. The police have made elaborate security arrangements in all the four constituencies. Nearly 1,300 policemen have been deployed across the city for the counting.

Earlier report

The future of the four-month-old B S Yediyurappa-led BJP government will be clear today as the counting of votes in the crucial by-elections to 15 assembly constituencies will be held today. 

Counting will start at 8 AM and results are expected by the evening. Postal ballots will be counted first, which will be followed by votes in EVMs. 

While the BJP government needs to win six of the 15 constituencies, exit polls have predicted wins in a minimum of eight seats for the saffron party. 

Some of disqualified MLAs

The by-poll results are crucial for Congress Legislature Party leader Siddaramaiah who is facing growing discontent against his unilateral style of functioning and selection of candidates for the polls. 

The poll outcome is also keenly awaited by JD(S)' Kumaraswamy who aims to keep his flock together amid threats of further internal bickering.