Mixed result for BJP in Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai's first poll outing

In a bittersweet result for the ruling BJP, the saffron party swept the Belagavi city corporation election, but failed to cross the majority mark in its bastion of Hubballi-Dharwad and finished second in Kalaburagi.

These elections, whose results came Monday, were Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai’s first electoral litmus test.

The Congress and the JD(S) also suffered setbacks in these local body elections.

Belagavi, where elections were fought on party symbols for the first time, saw the BJP winning 35 out of the 58 seats, far ahead of the Congress that bagged 10.

Remarkably, only two candidates out of 22 backed by the Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES) won, a total rout for the pro-Marathi outfit known for its clout on the city’s civic body. The AIMIM got one seat while the JD(S) failed to open its account.

Also read: No dispute with Basavaraj Bommai's leadership for Karnataka Assembly polls: K S Eshwarappa

The outcome of the Hubballi-Dharwad Municipal Corporation election came as a surprise as the BJP was looking to score a hat-trick. Hubballi is Bommai’s hometown, and the party has former chief minister Jagadish Shettar, Union Minister Pralhad Joshi and other legislators here.

Out of the 82 seats, the BJP won 39 while the Congress, which was keen to wrest control of the civic body, managed 33 seats. The JD(S) could win just one seat, while Independents bagged six. The AIMIM sprang a surprise by winning three.

The BJP is short of three to reach the halfway mark of 42 and the party is confident of seeing itself through as it has three MLAs, two MLCs and an MP to up its tally. For Congress, however, the Hubballi-Dharwad result is an improvement, coming as it does on the BJP’s turf.

In Kalaburagi, the Congress ended up as the single-largest party winning 27 out of the 55 seats despite favourable conditions for a clear majority. The BJP won 23, JD(S) four and one Independent.

The BJP and the Congress are making hectic political manoeuvres to take control of the city body.

The Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP, for all the noise it made, did not win a single seat in Belagavi, Hubballi-Dharwad and Kalaburagi.

The outcome of polls at the Doddaballapur CMC, Tarikere TMC, Bidar CMC and Bhadravathi CMC was a mixed bag. These local bodies had polls for 56 seats of which the Congress won 25, the BJP 13 and JD(S) eight.

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