Rajiv Chandrashekar,

BANGALORE: Industrialist Rajiv Chandrashekar was elected to the Rajya Sabha in the biennial elections held on Tuesday in the much debated contest for the fourth seat defeating litterateur U.R. Ananthamurthy, thanks to the support extended by the ruling Janata Dal (S)-Bharatiya Janata Party combine. The candidates fielded by the three main political parties sailed through in the election.

Highest-ever tally

Members of the Legislative Assembly sent Mr. Chandrashekar, who had contested as an independent to the Rajya Sabha, with the highest ever tally of 53 votes.

The issues raised by Prof. Ananthamurthy that he was contesting to uphold the dignity of the State and Kannadigas and the non-Kannadiga origin of Mr. Chandrashekar did not find favour with the MLAs.

M. Rajashekhara Murthy

The Congress candidate and Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman K. Rehman Khan got 49 votes.

K. Rehman Khan

The BJP's K.B. Shanappa obtained 47 votes. The Janata Dal (S) candidate M. Rajashekhara Murthy got 50 votes.

Mr. Chandrashekhar's tally of 53 was made up of the 34 excess votes of the BJP and the Janata Dal (S) votes remaining after Mr. Rajashekhara Murthy got the required number, and the five votes of the Janata Dal (United). Prof. Ananthamurthy got 24 votes, as expected, and they included 14 excess votes of the Congress and of four independents. There were 223 ballot papers. Ravikant Patil Shankerappa, Indi MLA, was an absentee. Mr. Rajiv Chandrashekhar, who was backed mainly by the BJP, which had 34 votes to cast after Mr. Shanappa got the required number of first preferential votes, and the Janata Dal (S) and Janata Dal (U), has set a record — the highest number of votes overtaking Vijay Mallya who also contested as an independent candidate in 2002 defeating with ease the BJP's Tara Devi Siddhartha who polled 34 votes against the required 44 to make it to the Rajya Sabha.

K.B. Shanappa.

Mr. Mallya had the backing of the then ruling party, Congress, and was also helped by cross-voting by some of the BJP MLAs. Mr. Mallya had gained 15 extra votes and sparked a controversy and the BJP had initiated action against six MLAs for defying the whip and facilitating Mr. Mallya's victory. Soon after the 223rd vote was counted, Prof. Ananthamurthy made a quiet, speedy exit.

Celebration time

For the quartet who sailed through, it was celebration time with supporters waiting with flowers and sweets to greet them outside the counting centre.

Going by the pattern of voting, Prof. Ananthamurthy was let down by some among the eight-member All India Progressive Janata Dal group which had sponsored him.

They are technically members of the Janata Dal (S) Legislature Party and the party had issued whips to all its MLAs through courier.

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