KPCC chief terms Chamundeswari win as 'victory of Dharma'

Bangalore, 7 (UNI) Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President Mallikarjuna Kharge today said the victory of the Congress over Janata Dal (Secular) in the Chamundeswari Assembly byelection reflected that money and muscle power will not help those in power during elections.

Reacting to the outcome of the bypoll in which party nominee Siddaramaiah defeated his nearest JD(S) rival Shivabasappa by a slender margin of 257 votes, he told UNI here that the verdict had shown that even caste factor had not played a role in the byelection. It was a victory of ''Dharma'' as JD(S) President H D Deve Gowda himself had termed the bypoll as a ''Dharma Yuddha''. The party had won the seat despite obstacles caused by both JD(S) and its coalition partner Bharatiya Janata Party, he claimed.

The KPCC chief thanked the party leaders and workers, besides the voters for their united efforts in ensuring the party's victory.

UNI SR GD SKB1341