 "JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy")
In a significant victory for the Janata Dal (Secular) [JD(S)], party president and former Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy has been declared the winner of the Mandya constituency.
Kumaraswamy, running as a National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate, secured the seat with a margin of 284,620 votes, defeating Congress candidate Venkataramane Gowda. He maintained a lead throughout 18 rounds of counting, winning with a total of 851,881 votes.
Kumaraswamy’s victory marks a turnaround for his family in Mandya. His son, Nikhil Kumaraswamy, contested the 2019 Lok Sabha elections from this constituency but lost to Sumalatha Ambareesh, an independent candidate backed by the BJP. Nikhil also faced defeat in the 2023 Karnataka Assembly elections from the Ramanagara constituency, losing to Congress’ H A Iqbal Hussain.
JDS candidate M Mallesh Babu also secured victory for the NDA from the Kolar seat in Karnataka.
Lok Sabha election 2019 results
In 2019, the JD(S) had allied with the Congress but managed to win only one out of the seven seats it contested. The BJP dominated the state, winning 25 out of 28 seats. Sumalatha Ambareesh, who won Mandya as an independent in 2019, later joined the BJP, aligning with the party's strategy and preventing a three-way vote split in the 2024 elections.
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Battle for Mandya constituency
The Mandya seat, traditionally held by the Congress and the Left, saw a high-stakes battle for Vokkaliga leadership in the agrarian district, involving key political figures like Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar of the Congress. Kumaraswamy’s victory in this context underscores a significant shift in voter sentiment.
Expressing his views on the overall trends in Karnataka, Kumaraswamy voiced his dissatisfaction with the NDA’s performance, despite his victory. He pointed out that minor mistakes cost the NDA six additional seats, particularly in Kalyana Karnataka, where favourable conditions were not capitalised due to issues including financial constraints.
Prajwal Revanna trailing in Hassan
His nephew, Prajwal Revanna, meanwhile, is trailing behind Congress candidate Shreyas M Patel by 42,649 votes in Hassan. Revanna, the sole JD(S) MP from the 2019 Lok Sabha, is currently under investigation by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) for alleged sexual assault on women. The investigation began after a pen drive containing 2,900 files involving multiple women was released. Prajwal’s former driver, Karthik, claimed to have shared the pen drive with Devaraje Gowda, who released its contents. Prajwal is currently in police custody.
Mandya constituency went to polls in the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections on April 26. The Mandya constituency recorded a voter turnout of 66.47 per cent, a decrease compared to previous elections. Kumaraswamy has three criminal cases against him and debts amounting to Rs 82.2 crore.
