Cong vote share gain is small but BJP has lost to everybody

Bangalore, May 8: BJP's cleaning act cost 21 seats, and the inability of outgoing Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar to hold its base in Mumbai-Karnataka spoiled the party. And the overall picture shows that the Congress has not gained much from the erosion of BJP's vote share.

It is BJP which is responsible for its defeat. The BJP has lost 21 seats in the region controlled by BS Yeddyurappa, and once ruled by the Reddy brothers. The area from Bellary to Shimoga had given BJP 25 seats in 2008, but after today's results it has only four seats.

This loss coupled with 23 seats lost in Mumbai-Karnataka means 44 seats slipped out of BJP's bag because of Yeddyurappa, G Janardhana Reddy and Shettar.

This becomes more clear when vote share is taken into account. Overall, the BJP lost 13.4 percent of its voters. However, the Congress has been able to gain only 2.46 percent of this and the rest of nearly 11 percent has been eaten away parties like Yeddyurappa's KJP, independents and others.

Defying any logic of returns over investment, the Congress increased its tally by 50 percent with a vote share increase of just 2.46 percent.

The BJP has, of course lost its erstwhile strongholds of Coastal Karnataka and Northern Karnataka, but it was evident that this would happen after the results of urban local bodies polls in March.

The BJP has been wiped out Udupi, Mangalore, Karwar, Shimoga, Hubli-Dharwad, Belgaum, Haveri and Davanagere.

Bangalore has given some consolation prize to BJP but the win in metropolis is due to individual candidates and little to do with the party.

The BJP has won 12 out of the 32 seats, giving Congress only three more seats than its previous tally.

With a good show in Bangalore, the JDS, which has retained its Vokkaliga seats, seems to have broken urban voters barrier. It won three seats in Bangalore and gave a strong fight in Bangalore South by pushing the Congress candidate to third position. This constituency has a mix base of highly qualified techie and migrants.

But, in democracy the winner takes all and the Congress will form the government without having received an all round support in Karnataka.

OneIndia News