Setback for BJP-JD(S), Cong wins Bengaluru Teachers Council seat

Maqsood Maniyar | NT

Bengaluru: Congress candidate Puttanna won the Bengaluru Teachers constituency bypoll on Friday for a record fifth time, beating JD(S) candidate and party state legal cell president AP Ranganath by a margin of 1,507 votes.

Ranganath also had the backing of the JD(S) ally, BJP. Polling was held for the seat on February 16 and counting was taken up on Tuesday.

Putanna who held the seat till last year, had left the BJP for the Congress last year, thereby vacating the seat under the anti-defection law.

He had contested from Rajaji Nagar Assembly constituency on a Congress ticket and lost to BJP incumbent Suresh Kumar in May last year.

The electors for the constituency are teachers. The seat covers Bengaluru Urban, Bengaluru Rural and Ramanagara districts.

Puttanna polled 8,260 votes and was closely followed by Ranganath who bagged 6,753 votes.

Avayji Manjunatha polled the third highest number of votes at 139 while Veena Serrao finished fourth with 74 votes.

Congress has 135-members in the 224-strong Assembly but had only 28 seats in the Council before the by-poll victory.

This is less than a third of the strength of the 75-member House.

Siddu, DKS say victory precursor to LS polls Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar congratulated Puttanna on the victory, even suggesting that it might be a sign of things to come in the Lok Sabha elections due later this year.

Siddaramaiah claimed that voters had rejected both JD(S) and BJP because the former had allied with a “communal” party while the latter had tied up with a dynastic party despite opposing the same.

“Congratulations to Congress candidate Puttanna for his victory in the Bengaluru Teachers constituency by-poll,” he said.

“BJP and JD(S) lost despite fielding a joint candidate. This proves that this is an alliance between former Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Kumaraswamy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah and not between the voters of the two parties,” he added, claiming JD(S) would break off their alliance with the BJP after the general elections.

Shivakumar claimed that it was a continuation of the pro-Congress sentiment among voters.

“The victory of the Congress candidate in the Bengaluru Teachers constituency by-poll is just the beginning. This result is proof of what the mood of the people is, heading into the Lok Sabha elections,” he said.