BJP suffers humiliating defeat in Karnataka

Bangalore, May 8 (PTI): The Bharatiya Janata Party has suffered a humiliating defeat in the Karnataka Assembly elections as Congress appeared to be well on its way to wresting power on its own after a gap of seven years. Hit by the exit of former Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa and the image of corruption during its tenure in the first government in the south, the party had won only 13 seats and was leading in just 26 seats in the 224-member Assembly according to results that had come in by 2.20pm. JD(S) and BJP were involved in a close race to wrest the main opposition status. Riding the anti-incumbency wave, Congress wrested its old southern fort by putting up an impressive show and touched the half-way mark of 113. The party has won 55 seats and was leading in 65. The JD(S) led by H D Deve Gowda won 14 seats and was ahead in 28 seats. The SP had won one seat while 'Others' have won 10 seats and were leading in 11. The fledgling Karnataka Janata Party (KJP) floated by Yeddyurappa, who achieved his immediate task of damaging BJP, won one seat and could establish leads in only eight seats. Yeddyurappa won from Shikaripura by over 15,000 votes. In the elections five years ago when BJP stormed to power for the first time in a southern state on its own, the party had won 110 seats against Congress' 80 and JD(S) 28. In the 224-member house, 113 seats would be required for majority. Polling was held in 223 segments, with the one in Periyapatna in Mysore district put off to May 28 following death of BJP candidate. Significantly, KJP has damaged the prospects of the BJP in many constituencies, eating into its votes.