Sringeri recounting row | BJP's D N Jeevaraj says he will 'wait and watch' amid Supreme Court's interim order

New Delhi: Former Sringeri MLA and BJP leader D N Jeevaraj on Tuesday said he would adopt a “wait and watch” approach following the Supreme Court’s interim order in the Sringeri Assembly constituency election dispute.

“The Supreme Court has passed an interim order, posting the next hearing for May 21. It has issued notice to the Election Commission of India. I will watch, wait and see. Let me see what happens next,” Jeevaraj told reporters here.

He added that he did not wish to comment further on the matter as the apex court would hear arguments from all sides, including the Election Commission, before delivering its judgment.

The dispute arose from the 2023 Karnataka Assembly elections, in which Congress candidate T D Rajegowda defeated BJP’s D N Jeevaraj by a narrow margin of 201 votes.

Jeevaraj challenged the result through an election petition in the Karnataka High Court, primarily seeking re-verification and recount of postal ballots.

In April 2026, the High Court ordered the re-verification of 279 originally rejected postal ballots. However, during the recount exercise conducted on May 2, 2026, the Returning Officer also re-examined previously validated postal ballots. This resulted in 255 votes in favour of Rajegowda being declared invalid, flipping the outcome in favour of Jeevaraj by a margin of 52 votes. Jeevaraj was subsequently sworn in as MLA.

The Supreme Court on Monday stayed the effect of the recount, restoring the status quo ante (the state of affairs before the recount) and reinstating Rajegowda as MLA.

The bench observed that the Returning Officer’s exercise of re-verifying already validated postal ballots was prima facie invalid. The matter has been posted for further hearing on May 21.