Cross voting helps Cong gain control of state’s upper house

CJohn ross voting by at to the lowest degree 11 legislators of the Bharatiya Janata company and Janata Dal (Secular) helped the u.s. Congress enamour an unexpected fifth seat in Karnataka’s legislative council elections on Thursday, giving the ruling party a majority in the 75-member Upper House and marking a success in chief minister DK Shivakumar’s first political test.The Congress won five of the seven seats on offer, and the BJP secured the remaining two. JD(S) candidate Govindraju, whose party had relied on the BJP support for the final seat, was defeated.Based on the available figures, at least six BJP lawmakers and between four and eight JD(S) lawmakers appear to have voted against their parties, although the precise distribution may become clearer once the parties complete their internal assessment of the ballots. One BJP legislator’s ballot was declared invalid.The Congress, which had 134 members in the 224-member House, had the strength to elect four candidates on its own but required support of at least six additional lawmakers to secure the fifth seat.The Congress also received backing from independent lawmakers Latha Mallikarjun, KH Puttaswamy Gowda and Darshan Puttannaiah. Expelled BJP legislators ST Somashekhar and Shivaram Hebbar also supported Congress candidates.Congress general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala said the result reflected support among legislators for the party’s administration.“In the first round of the Legislative Council elections, all five Congress candidates won with a landslide victory. Congress had 135 votes, but it won 151,” he said.Congress candidates BK Hariprasad, PV Mohan, BS Shivanna, Tippannappa Kamakanoor and Vinay Karthik Prakash were elected. According to the party, Hariprasad secured 30 votes, Mohan 29, Shivanna 30, Kamakanoor 30 and Vinay Karthik 32, giving the party a combined total of 151 votes, indicating it received another 11 votes from legislators outside its own ranks, largely through cross voting by BJP and JD(S) MLAs.The BJP’s Raghu Kautilya won with 29 votes.Lingaraj Patil secured 27 votes and entered the council after the elimination round, despite falling short of the winning quota of 27.63 votes. One vote cast for Raghu Kautilya was invalid. Govindraju received 14 votes.According leaders aware of the matter, the BJP effectively had 64 votes after accounting for support from expelled leader Basanagouda Patil Yatnal. Thirty votes each were earmarked for Kautilya and Patil, leaving four surplus votes that were expected to be transferred to JD(S) candidate Govindraju. “Kautilya secured 29 valid votes, while one ballot cast in his favour was declared invalid, leaving his allocation effectively intact,” said a senior leader.Patil, who was expected to receive 30 votes, secured only 27, indicating that at least three BJP legislators voted elsewhere. BJP leaders acknowledged three instances of cross voting, though the final tally could be higher depending on how the surplus votes were transferred.The JD(S), with 18 MLAs, expected Govindraju to secure at least 18 first preference votes before receiving BJP transfers. Instead, he polled only 14 votes, indicating that at least four JD(S) legislators voted against the party line. If all four BJP surplus votes were transferred to Govindraju as planned, the number of JD(S) cross votes could be as high as eight.The outcome increased the Congress’s strength in the legislative council from 34 to 39 members, giving it control of the 75-member House for the first time. The BJP now has 29 members, the JD(S) six and there is one independent member.Polling took place at the Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru between 9 am and 4 pm. All 222 eligible MLAs cast their ballots, producing a 100 % turnout. Counting began at 5 pm.The contest was closely watched as the first electoral test for Shivakumar after he assumed office.“Today, a very big mandate has been given. Many from different political parties, cutting across party lines, have voted in favour of the government. They have agreed on the policies. I thank all the legislators who have helped us, who have voted for us. We stood unitedly, and these are the results of the unity of the Congress party in the country,” the CM said.Leader of the Opposition R Ashoka acknowledged that BJP legislators had crossed the party line.“Our candidates have won and we congratulate them. We have three cross votes. We will know who have done it, and the party will take appropriate action,” he said.Among the victorious Congress candidates, Tippannappa Kamakanoor said, “ I will work very well with the party. I work for poor people. I will try to bring the Congress Party to power in the state in 2028.”Shivanna Malavalli thanked the party leadership and MLAs for their support. “I am a student oriented thinker. I am always thinking about the students of the state. I will continue to work for their welfare and development.”