In a closely contested election, Congress’ Sowmya Reddy faced a narrow defeat by a mere 16 votes against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Jayanagar constituency in the state of Karnataka, India. The results were announced in the early hours of May 14, following a late night fiasco.
According to a report by The Hindu, Sowmya Reddy was initially declared the winner of the constituency after the electoral functions and counting concluded on May 13. However, BJP MP Tejaswi Surya and MLA Ashok raised objections to the consideration of 177 postal ballots, which had earlier been found to be flawed by election officials.
Credits – The Indian Express
As a result, election officials agreed to recount the votes, which was opposed by Congress leaders such as Ramanlinga Reddy and DK Shivakumar. This led to a protest outside the counting centre, with crowds chanting the names and slogans of their respective parties. Videos from the scene have gone viral.
“Even though Ms. Reddy, the Congress candidate from Jayanagar constituency, achieved a victory, on the pretext of recounting, the election officials have tried to twist the results. Opposing this and the move to let Mr. Ashok and Mr. Surya, who is not an agent, illegally enter the counting centre, we held a protest opposite the counting centre,” tweeted the KPCC chief DK Shivakumar.
Credits – The Quint
The protest caused chaos outside the counting centre, with BJP workers raising slogans hailing the party’s victory. Congress workers eventually dispersed after hours of cheering.
By 1 am, the Election Commission of India (ECI) declared the final results, with Reddy losing by 16 votes: Reddy received 57,781 votes, while the BJP’s S. Raghu received 57,797 votes. Congress leaders have reportedly planned to challenge the results in court, claiming that they are “unjust.”
