The results also revealed instances of cross-voting by BJP and JD(S) legislators in support of Congress candidates, as the ruling party garnered 151 votes, exceeding the anticipated 140 votes by 11, according to sources.
Voting for the seven MLC seats, chosen by MLAs, occurred on Thursday at Vidhana Soudha, with the votes counted later in the evening.
The Congress candidates who triumphed are Thippannappa Kamknoor, P V Mohan, B K Hariprasad (KPCC president), Shivanna B S, and Vinay Karthik Prakash. The BJP’s successful candidates were Lingaraj Patil and Raghu R, while JD(S)’s sole candidate, Govindaraju, did not secure a win.
The Congress victory in this election is viewed as a morale booster for new CM Shivakumar and the party’s newly appointed State President B K Hariprasad. The party’s achievement in receiving more votes than anticipated, particularly from other parties, while maintaining its own tally despite concerns of internal cross-voting, illustrates their leadership and organizational capabilities, a senior party official indicated.
For the BJP, the cross-voting has been perceived as a “surprise” setback amid ongoing factional disputes and dissatisfaction with state leadership, a party leader commented. For the JD(S), this outcome highlights potential vulnerabilities, especially with Shivakumar, a notable Vokkaliga leader, now in the CM role.
The elections were necessitated as the terms of seven MLCs — Congress leaders Naseer Ahmed, Tippannappa, and B K Hariprasad, BJP leaders N Nagaraju (MTB), Prathap Simha Nayak K, and Sunil Vallyapur; along with Govindaraju from JD(S) are set to expire upon retirement on June 30.
Preliminary reports indicate that three BJP and eight JD(S) MLAs allegedly participated in cross-voting during this election, with one BJP MLA’s ballot being declared invalid.
From the Congress party, B K Hariprasad garnered 30 votes, P V Mohan received 29, B S Shivanna had 30, Tippannappa Kamakanur received 30, and Vinay Karthik – seen as close to Shivakumar — secured 32 votes for their victories, according to sources.
For the BJP, Raghu R acquired 29 votes, and Lingaraj Patil got 27, both winning their seats. The candidate victory quota was set at 27.63 votes, but Lingaraj Patil did not reach that number and ultimately succeeded in the elimination round. Notably, one vote cast for Raghu was invalidated, sources added.
Govindraju, the JD(S) candidate, managed to receive only 14 votes.
In the current 224-member Assembly, which has a total of 222 active members, Congress holds 135 MLAs (including the Deputy Speaker) and receives backing from one MLA from Sarvodaya Karnataka Paksha, two Independents, and two unattached members who were suspended from the BJP — S T Somashekar and Shivaram Hebbar.
The BJP consists of 62 MLAs in the Assembly and has the support of Kalyana Rajya Pragathi Paksha’s G Janardhan Reddy, who is associated with the BJP, along with expelled saffron party figure Basangouda Patil Yatnal. The JD(S) maintains a presence of 18 MLAs.
With this outcome, Congress’s strength in the Legislative Council is set to rise to 39, while the BJP will experience a drop to 28, and the JD(S) will decrease to 6.
Celebrating the Congress party’s success in securing 5 seats in the Legislative Council elections, CM Shivakumar remarked that the results demonstrated the support of legislators for the government’s welfare initiatives and the people’s interests in the state.
“Today, all legislators have shown their confidence. Members from various parties have rallied behind us. Furthermore, all our legislators have remained united,” he stated.
Regarding the cross-voting allegations, Shivakumar mentioned that he neither solicited support from other party legislators nor had knowledge of individual voting choices due to the secret ballot system used in the election.
Randeep Singh Surjewala, Congress general secretary in charge of Karnataka, described the outcome as a substantial endorsement of the Congress government and its commitments to welfare.
Admitting to cross-voting by BJP MLAs, senior leader R Ashoka stated that individuals who betrayed the party will be identified, and decisions on actions against them will be made.
BJP State President Vijayendra stated, “Once we gather information on who engaged in cross-voting and their reasons, the party will take appropriate action.” Ahead of the voting on Thursday, both Congress and JD(S) had isolated their legislators in separate resorts outside the city, fearing potential cross-voting.
Earlier, Somashekar and Hebbar claimed they voted according to their conscience, noting that neither the BJP nor the JD(S) approached them for votes, while Shivakumar reached out to request their support for the Congress candidate.
In the meantime, Congress protested against Yatnal for allegedly breaching secrecy by contacting the BJP national president regarding his voting intentions, but the returning officer dismissed their appeal.
