Bengaluru (Karnataka) : The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is inching closer towards forming the next government in Karnataka, as it has taken a significant lead so far, stunning and ousting the ruling Congress and leaving the JD-S at the third spot.
As per Election Commission data, the BJP is leading in 118 of the 222 constituencies , while the Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) are leading in 65 and 38 seats respectively, thus implying that the saffron party could emerge as the single largest party in the state. This was a dramatic jump from the 40 seats the BJP won five years ago.
Among the chief ministerial candidates of the three parties, BJP’s Yeddyurappa is leading in Shikaripura by 21,140 votes, while JD(S)’s H.D. Kumaraswamy is leading by a margin of 13,761 in Ramanagara and 12,347 in Channapatna.
Meanwhile, incumbent Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is leading in Badami by 2,726 votes, while he is trailing in Chamundeshwari by 24,072 votes.
Any party or grouping will need 113 of the total 224 seats to secure a majority in the Assembly. Polling did not take place in two constituencies on Saturday.
The BJP was overjoyed. “We are in a jubilant mood because we have crossed the half-way mark. We are confident of winning,” spokesman S. Shantharam told IANS.
BJP activists and leaders celebrated noisily in both Bengaluru and New Delhi, waving party flags and shouting slogans hailing Prime Minister Narendra Modi, their main vote-getter, and party President Amit Shah.
There were also celebrations outside the residence of Yeddyurappa, who has been Chief Minister earlier too.
The Janata Dal-Secular of former Prime Minister H.D. Dewe Gowda, which has been expected to play the role of a kingmaker in the event of a hung Assembly, was leading in 40 seats — the same number it won five years ago.
As the vote count progressed, BJP leaders became assertive, saying they were confident of taking power again in Karnataka while Congress leaders began to speak about the possibility of an alliance with the JD-S.
BJP leader and Union Minister Sadanand Gowda said that there was no question of any alliance.
Union minister Prakash Javadekar, who is in charge of Karnataka, met BJP President Amit Shah in New Delhi.
Analysts said the BJP was leading in Lingayat dominated seats and the JD-S in Vokkaliga dominated areas.
Expectations of a BJP victory in Karnataka lifted the key Indian equity indices during the mid-morning trade session on Tuesday.
According to market observers, broadly subdued Asian indices and disappointing macro-economic inflation data points released on Monday capped some gains.
Sector-wise, healthy buying was witnessed in banking, capital goods, metals, consumer durables and automobile stocks.
The Sensex has so far touched a high of 35,993.53 points and a low of 35,498.83 points during the intra-day trade.
