Highlights
- Big blow to Congress in Legislative Council elections of four states, did not get even a single victory on 28 seats.
- 6 seats for BJP and 5 seats for SP in UP, Akhilesh alleged irregularities in counting.
- In Bihar, Jansuraj snatched the Darbhanga teacher seat from Congress, Neeraj Kumar won the Patna graduate seat.
New Delhi: The election results of Legislative Council seats of 4 states of the country have started a new debate in the politics of the country. Congress suffered a major setback in these elections held in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra and Karnataka. Congress could not open its account on 28 seats. BJP maintained its dominance, while Samajwadi Party performed better in Uttar Pradesh. In Bihar, Prashant Kishor’s Jansuraj Party also managed to win one seat. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken a dig at Congress over the results of elections conducted through ballot paper.
PM Modi took a jibe at Congress
Prime Minister Narendra Modi targeted Congress while referring to the Legislative Council elections held in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra and Karnataka. He said that in these states voting was done through ballot paper. In such a situation, guess how many seats Congress got. After the defeat in the elections, Congress leaders are talking about reviewing the results, but are firm on the demand of holding elections through ballot paper. BJP leaders also attacked Congress and said that these results raise questions on the logic of holding EVMs responsible for the defeat.
BJP has 6 seats, SP has 5 seats in UP
Elections were held on 11 Legislative Council seats of Uttar Pradesh. According to the results and trends available after about 36 hours of vote counting, BJP is expected to get 6 seats and SP is expected to get 5 seats. Even in the year 2020, BJP had 6 seats, while SP’s seats increased from 3 to 5. In this way, BJP neither gained nor lost, but SP gained 2 seats. SP won Varanasi Teacher, Agra Teacher and Allahabad-Jhansi Graduate seat. Akhilesh Yadav is excited with the results, but he advised the workers to exercise caution. Akhilesh said that one should not lose consciousness in excitement and should celebrate the victory peacefully. He warned that if the workers created a ruckus, the BJP would start terming their victory as hooliganism.
‘Had there been no irregularities in counting, all seats would have been won’
Akhilesh Yadav alleged that if there had been no irregularities in vote counting, SP could have won all the seats. He also shared several videos of the controversies that took place during the counting on social media. In Agra, he alleged that SP candidate Akash Aggarwal was attacked and BJP tried to win the elections by creating irregularities. However, ultimately Akash Aggarwal won the election. Akash also sat on strike during the counting of votes. After the victory, he said that he got huge support from the public, hence he was able to win the election. He alleged that BJP tried to rig the elections. Expressing concern over the electoral environment, Akash said that looking at the current situation of the Legislative Council elections, it seems that in the future, perhaps the same parties which will be in power will field candidates.
Both seats of Varanasi are in SP’s account.
Both the graduate and teacher legislative council seats of Varanasi were earlier also with SP. This time too, SP’s victory on both the seats was said to be certain. There was an altercation between agents of BJP and SP during the counting of votes. Making it an issue, Akhilesh said that Banaras has organized a road show of BJP’s failure and now efforts are being made to influence the results. SP leader Udayveer Singh also targeted BJP. He said that BJP leaders talk here and there, but do not tell why they lost in Varanasi. Udayveer claimed that BJP’s defeat in Varanasi is an indication of what could happen in the upcoming assembly elections.
Close contest in Gorakhpur, BJP’s Dhruv Tripathi wins
BJP’s Dhruv Tripathi won the Gorakhpur-Faizabad teacher seat in a tough contest. Independent candidate Rajeev Yadav stood second. Here BJP had got lead in counting of first preference votes. When the counting of second preference votes started, there was an uproar again and Rajiv Yadav left the counting and went out. Akhilesh Yadav also raised questions on this incident. He said that BJP lost morally in Gorakhpur and if there was no conspiracy in the counting of votes, the result would have been like that in Varanasi. On the other hand, UP Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya took a dig at SP and said that the party has won only 5 seats, so there is no need to make much fuss. He claimed that SP will be defeated in the 2027 assembly elections.
Jansuraj gave a blow to Congress in Bihar
Elections were held on 8 Legislative Council seats of Bihar. According to available information, results of 6 seats had been declared. BJP won Kosi graduate and Tirhut teacher seats. Rashtriya Janata Dal candidate won the Patna teacher seat, while Saran teacher seat went to independent candidate Rahul Raj. Independent Vanshidhar Brajwasi won the Tirhut graduate seat. BJP was leading in Darbhanga graduate seat. The biggest setback for Congress in Bihar was on Darbhanga teacher seat, which it previously held. This time the candidate of Prashant Kishor’s Jansuraj Party won this seat. Even Congress’s account was not opened.
Neeraj Kumar wins Patna graduate seat
JDU’s Neeraj Kumar won the Patna graduate seat. Bahubali leader Anant Singh had used all his strength to make Jansuraj’s candidate Anuj Singh win. According to reports, he had also prepared Rasgullas before the counting of votes started. But after the results came in favor of Neeraj Kumar, instead of celebration there was silence in his house. Neeraj Kumar took a jibe at Anant Singh and imitated him and said that the muscle reel has come to an end. During the election campaign, Anant Singh had said that Neeraj Kumar would be gassed when the results came.
After Neeraj’s victory, his supporters were seen dancing with mint leaves. He jokingly said that if Anant Singh or his supporters suffer from indigestion or gas, they should take mint from Neeraj Kumar’s house. After the defeat, Anant Singh said that the public has given the verdict and he accepts it. He said that he has no complaints against his party, but the opposition to Neeraj Kumar will continue. After this he went inside the house and closed the door. He said that now it is time for him to sleep and he will not talk to anyone.
Tejashwi expressed happiness, BJP replied
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav expressed happiness over his party’s victory on the Patna teacher seat. This seat was won by BJP in the year 2020, but this time it went to RJD. Tejashwi said that his party has won at least one seat in the elections with educated voters. He claimed that if the elections were held in a free and fair manner, RJD’s performance would have been better. Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sinha hit back at Tejashwi. He said that those who do not get success, they make excuses because they have no other option.
CM Samrat targeted Rahul Gandhi
Former Bihar Congress president Akhilesh Prasad Singh expressed concern over his party’s defeat. He said that if the candidates had been selected properly, perhaps Congress would not have had to see this day. Taking aim at Rahul Gandhi, Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary said that when the elections were held through ballot paper, then whom will Rahul Gandhi blame for his defeat? He said that whether the elections are through EVM or ballot paper, Rahul Gandhi’s defeat is certain because the public does not like him.
Congress loses 2 seats in Maharashtra
Elections were held on 5 Legislative Council seats in Maharashtra. According to the available results, Mahayuti won two seats, while Mahavikas Aghadi won one seat. Trends were revealed during the counting of votes on the remaining 2 seats. BJP won the Pune teachers seat and Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena won the Amravati teachers seat. The NCP candidate from Sharad Pawar’s faction won the Pune graduate seat. Even in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar graduate seat, the victory of Sharad Pawar group’s candidate was said to be almost certain, while in Nagpur, BJP’s Sudhakar Kohle was leading. Congress candidate Abhijeet Vanjari had lagged behind. It is a matter of concern for the Congress that out of the five seats for which elections were held, it had previously held two and it has lost both.
Sharad Pawar faction showed mirror to Congress
Maharashtra Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule targeted Rahul Gandhi on the position of Congress. He said that now Rahul Gandhi will have to find a new excuse for defeat. On the other hand, Congress leaders alleged that BJP won the elections by using government machinery and money power. Congress spokesperson Atul Londhe Patil said that if the elections were held honestly, the results would have been different. However, NCP’s Sharad Pawar faction leader Shashikant Shinde showed the mirror to the Congress. He said that if Congress had not been adamant and the leaders of Mahavikas Aghadi had sat together and made a strategy, then Mahayuti could have been given a tough competition by fighting the elections together.
Congress government in Karnataka, still defeated on all four seats
The results of Karnataka proved to be the biggest setback for the Congress. Despite the Congress government in the state, the party could not win even one of the 4 Legislative Council seats. BJP won 3 seats, while Janata Dal Secular (JDS) snatched one seat which was earlier held by Congress. JDS candidate AP Ranganath defeated Congress candidate on Bengaluru teachers seat. Taking a dig at the results, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnav said that sensible people have understood what the election results are indicating. It is difficult to say whether Rahul Gandhi will understand or not.
‘Will review the defeat, demand for ballot paper will continue’
Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said that he expected Congress to win at least 2 seats, but it did not happen. He said that the party will review the reasons for the defeat and the shortcomings that remain will be removed. When he was asked that Rahul Gandhi demanded elections through ballot paper and despite voting using ballot paper, Congress lost in these elections, he said that there are wins and losses in elections.
DK Shivakumar made it clear that Congress will continue to demand elections through ballot paper. He also said that the public message will be discussed in detail by sitting with party leaders. According to him, BJP and JDS should not be overly happy with these results, because Congress had earlier won the by-elections. Congress will prepare a new action plan after November 1.
Prahlad Joshi said, ‘Be it button or ballot, the result is the same’
Taking a dig at the performance of Congress, Union Minister Prahlad Joshi said that whether voting is done by pressing the button or through ballot paper, the result is the same, the elimination of Congress. He said that Congress constantly makes allegations of vote theft, but despite having its own government in Karnataka, the party lost the elections. In such a situation, Congress should stop raising questions on EVMs. Prahlad Joshi said that Congress leaders should accept that the problem is not in the EVMs but in the thinking of the Congress. BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi also attacked Rahul Gandhi. He said that defeat has become the destiny of Congress and wherever Rahul Gandhi goes, defeat is certain. He said that the sooner Congress leaders understand this, the better it would be.
What is the political message of these results of MLC elections?
Overall, in these elections BJP retained its seats in Uttar Pradesh and also made gains in Karnataka. Samajwadi Party gained 2 seats in Uttar Pradesh. In Bihar, Jansuraj snatched one seat from Congress, while RJD won the Patna teacher seat. Mahayuti gained ground in Maharashtra and Congress lost its old seats. These results have made it necessary for Congress to review its strategy, selection of candidates and coordination with allies. On the other hand, BJP is presenting these results as a reply to Rahul Gandhi’s election allegations. Now it will be important to see what lessons the political parties take from these results and what impact it has on the upcoming assembly elections.
Also read: BJP wins in close contest in Gorakhpur, SP alleges irregularities; Even changing the candidate did not work
SK Sharma is a content writer who writes on news, entertainment, and lifestyle topics. She has over four years of experience and is known for conveying information in simple and clear language.
