Expelled from the BJP ahead of the December 5 bypolls, rebel Sharath Bachegowda has had the last laugh by winning as an independent from Hosakote assembly segment against the saffron party's M T B Nagaraj.
Sharath, the 37-year-old son of BJP MP from Chikkaballapura B N Bache Gowda, sprang a surprise by winning by a margin of 11,486 votes against Nagaraj, who was in the Congress previously and joined the BJP after resigning his assembly membership to contest the bypolls.
"This victory is not mine but the victory of the people of Hosakote, our leaders and workers who toiled hard day and night," a jubilant Sharath told reporters at Hosakote.
Narrating the challenges he faced, Sharath said it was a hard-earned victory.
"My election campaign was devoid of any star campaigners. It was purely the effort of our workers who stood by us all along.
We had to face two national parties, the Congress and the BJP," Sharath said.
About his future plans, he said the BJP may not require him as of now because it has got a majority on its own.
However, he will decide his future course of action after consulting his supporters and the voters of Hosakote.
An engineering graduate from PES College in Bengaluru and a Master of Science from the university of Michigan in the US, Sharath was the Karnataka Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha secretary.
In the 2018 assembly election, the BJP had pitted him as its candidate from Hosakote but he lost to M T B Nagaraj.
When the process for bypolls started, Sharath was quick to announce contesting the election as independent candidate.
The BJP tried its best to persuade Sharath not to contest but in vain.
There were allegations levelled against his father Bache Gowda that he clandestinely worked for his son and avoided canvassing for Nagaraj.
After the poll results declared Sharath as winner, Nagaraj squarely blamed Bache Gowda.
"The BJP should initiate disciplinary action against Bache Gowda and send a message to those who indulge in anti-party activities.
I appeal to the party leaders that the action taken against him should be a lesson to all such people in future," Nagaraj told reporters.
Trashing the charges, Bache Gowda said his son took an unilateral decision to contest the election and did not consult him.
"I neither went to the polling booth today, nor I greeted him (Sharath) till now.Even he did not inform me about his victory," Bache Gowda said.
According to him, the BJP state president Nalin Kumar Kateel had called him to discuss the matter.
"I will wait and see what happens in the coming days," Bache Gowda said.
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