New Delhi: The Congress is set to win the Karnataka assembly elections, and was leading in 124 seats to the incumbent BJP’s 69, according to latest figures released by the Election Commission of India.
Former Congress ally Janata Dal (Secular) was ahead in 24 constituencies in the 224-seat assembly.
According to news agency PTI, the Congress had got a vote share of 43 per cent by 11:30 am, the BJP 36.04 per cent and the JD(S) 13.04 per cent.
After the trends in all seats became evident, Senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah said the party would form the government on its own.
Congress leader Kamal Nath was also confident that the party would form the next government in the state. “BJP will attempt to strike a deal with MLAs of other parties and also Independents… something they have done many times. The politics of trade that they started with Arunachal Pradesh is yet to end,” the former Madhya Pradesh chief minister said.
It can be recalled that a Congress-JD(S) combine had formed the government in 2018 but was toppled by the BJP after 14 months due to defections.
For the BJP, a defeat in the state – considered its gateway to the South – comes as a rare dampener since the party has won many state elections in the recent past while the Congress’ national footprint has shrunk to its lowest in the last decade.
The election in Karnataka was the first big electoral battle between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi after the latter was convicted for defamation in March and as a result expelled from Lok Sabha.
The campaign in the state was high powered with Modi and a host of BJP leaders descending on the state, while the Congress kept aflame its “40 per cent commission sarkar” jibe, referring to alleged charges of corruption against the outgoing government.
The “40 per cent commission” row erupted following the suicide of Belagavi-based contractor Santosh Patil in April 2022, who had alleged that former BJP minister K.S. Eshwarappa demanded 40 per cent commission for the release of funds for the civil works undertaken by him at a village. The Karnataka police had later cleared the leader of the charges.
The BJP’s bid to retain power had rested on the planks of the “double engine” government, its pet Hindutva pitch and the support from the Lingayat community, who account for 17 per cent of the state’s population.
In the 2018 assembly election, the BJP had emerged as the single-largest party with 104 seats (36 per cent vote), followed by the Congress with 78 (38 per cent vote) and the Janata Dal (Secular) with 37 seats (18 per cent vote).
Also read: ‘My father should be CM’: Siddaramaiah’s son as early trends show Congress leading in Karnataka