Karnataka bypolls: Congress bags both seats

Bangalore, Aug 24: Results for the Mandya and Bangalore Rural Lok Sabha seats were announced on Saturday. The by-polls were seen as a prestige battle between the ruling Congress and the JD(S) and the former came up with flying colours.

While nine candidates contested from Mandya in the August 21 bypolls, 13 contested from Bangalore Rural constituency. In Mandya, actor Ramya of the Congress took on former MLA Puttaraju while wife of former chief minister and JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy, Anita, took on D K Suresh, brother of Congress's D K Shiva Kumar in Bangalore Rural. The seats fell vacant after their sitting JD(S) MPs quit after getting elected to the Karnataka state assembly in May.

11.20 am

Congress wins the prestige battle 2-0

Ramya wins from Mandya by 67,611 votes. She later said she would work hard as an MP and raise all local problems in the Parliament. Meanwhile, the Congress supporters were seen celebrating the twin by-poll victories.

11.10 am

Congress about to make it 2-0

D K Suresh wins by a huge margin of over a lakh votes from Bangalore Rural. Ramya leads by over 45,000 votes in Mandya.

10.45 am

D K Suresh leads by over 1 lakh votes

D K Suresh thanks his party colleagues and brother Shiva Kumar after putting up a good show in the bypolls.

10.40 am

Congress extends lead in both seats

D K Suresh takes the lead to 70,000 votes after eight rounds of counting. Ramya's lead is over 33,000.

10.25 am

Ramya leads by nearly 22,000 votes in Mandya.

10.02 am

D K Suresh extends the lead

The Congress extends its lead in Bangalore Rural. Party candidate D K Suresh leads by over 33,000 votes against JD(S)'s Anita Kumaraswamy at the end of the fifth round of counting. If Suresh wins, it will be considered a reward for D K Shivakumar, his brother who has been kept out of the Cabinet on grounds of accusation.

9.50 am

Trailing JD(S) candidate wants counting in segments dominated by his party

JD(S)'s Puttaraju, who was trailing by 18,000 votes against Congress's Ramya in Mandya constituency, said the counting kad started mainly in the areas dominated by the Congress and hence he was trailing. He said counting in Lok Sabha segments dominated by the JD(S) should also be counted. Puttaraju said he would eventually lead by over a lakh votes.

The other candidate, Anita Kumaraswamy, was trailing by over 30,000 votes.

9.27 am

Ramya leads by over 11,500 votes in Mandya. In Bangalore Rural also, the Congress is leading by over 10,000 votes.

9.00 am

Anita Kumaraswamy trails by nearly 6,500 votes

JD(S) candidate from bangalore Rural Anita Kumaraswamy trails D K Suresh by nearly 6,500 votes. Anita had also lost the assembly election from Channapatna to the Samajwadi Party opponent in May.

8.45 am

Ramya leads, Anita trails:

Early trends showed the JD(S) leading in Mandya while the Congress in Bangalore Rural. However, at the end of the first round in Mandya, Ramya was leading Puttaraju by nearly 1,500 votes. In Bangalore Rural, Anita Kumaraswamy was trailing.

Election officials opened the 'strong room' where the electronic voting machines were kept after the elections held on Wednesday. Security has been beefed up at the counting centres.

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