The Hindu : Karnataka News : BJP, JD(S) continue to have a good run

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Friday, Sep 17, 2010
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Karnataka

Karnataka

BJP, JD(S) continue to have a good run

S. Rajendran

Congress's show has been dismal in all the elections since the 2008 Assembly polls
MLCs who contested the bypoll have lost

Bangalore: The Bharatiya Janata Party juggernaut in the State continues to roll, having won all the elections held since the May 2008 Assembly elections.

There have been three rounds of byelections to the Legislative Assembly in the past three years and the BJP has been successful in all of them. The Janata Dal (Secular) too has performed creditably while the Congress has been humbled. In the byelections from Kadur and Gulbarga constituencies held on September 13, the Congress has been routed. Its candidates, Ajay Singh, son of the former Chief Minister N. Dharam Singh, and K.M. Kemparaj have been pushed to the third position.

Party strength

While the strength of the BJP in the 225-member Legislative Assembly remains at 117 (including the Speaker), the strength of the Jaanta Dal (Secular) has increased by one to 28 while that of the Congress has dipped to 73 with the loss of Kadur.

It is another matter that the Janata Dal (Secular) has virtually been gifted the Gulbarga South seat by the BJP which denied ticket to Aruna Chandrashekhar Patil Revoor, wife of Chandrashekar Patil Revoor, whose death resulted in the byelection. Voter sympathy enabled Ms. Revoor to romp home a winner much to the benefit of the Janata Dal (Secular). Interestingly, the Janata Dal (Secular) missed winning the Kadur seat although it was widely believed that the party candidate Y.S.V. Datta would be victorious.

The two members of the Legislative Council fielded by the Janata Dal (Secular) Y.S.V. Datta) and BJP (Shashil Namoshi) have lost the elections.

The byelections results are a severe blow to the Congress, whose dismal show in all elections since the 2008 Assembly polls continues. The loss in Gulbarga South is a major jolt to Mr. Dharam Singh and Union Minister for Labour M. Mallikarjun Kharge, who hail from the Gulbarga district and are regarded as important leaders of the Congress in the Hyderabad Karnataka region.

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