Gururaj Jamkhandi/TNNDharwad: The BJP’s S V Sankanur secured a third consecutive victory in the Karnataka Legislative Council’s West Graduates’ Constituency, defeating Congress candidate Mohan Limbikai by 9,323 votes. The result is a major setback for the ruling Congress, whose high-profile campaign failed to dislodge the BJP incumbent.Sankanur polled 33,711 first-preference votes against Limbikai’s 24,388. Counting began at 8 am on Oct 27 at the University of Agricultural Sciences in Dharwad and concluded peacefully at 2 am on Oct 28.Sankanur, who has represented the constituency since 2014, retained the seat for a third consecutive term, reinforcing the BJP’s hold over Dharwad, Gadag, Haveri and Uttara Kannada districts.Congress’s campaign falls shortThe defeat has raised questions about the Congress’s ability to translate its organisational strength and leadership intervention into electoral gains. KPCC president B K Hariprasad and other senior leaders campaigned extensively for Limbikai, seeking to reclaim the constituency. However, their efforts failed to overcome Sankanur’s lead.The outcome is particularly significant for the Congress, which had invested considerable political capital in the contest against an incumbent who has won the seat twice before.Limbikai’s political journey comes full circleThe result also highlights Limbikai’s changing political fortunes. In 2008, as a BJP candidate, he defeated sitting Congress MLC H K Patil in the constituency. Before completing his term, however, Limbikai resigned from the Legislative Council and left the BJP to join the Karnataka Janata Party (KJP), launched by former chief minister B S Yediyurappa.He contested the 2013 Assembly election from Hubballi-Dharwad West as a KJP candidate but lost, and later joined the Congress. His latest defeat, this time as the Congress nominee, marks an unsuccessful bid to regain the constituency he had won for the BJP in 2008.Vote tallyIndependent candidate Kanthakumar R secured 4,055 votes, finishing third, followed by independent Dr G H Imrapur with 338 and Umesh Krishnappa Daivajna with 228. Other candidates were Nishanth Shankar Bankapur (143), Krishna H Balegar of the Karnataka Rashtra Samithi (141), Abdul Mannan (120), Santosh Manohar Vernekar (85), Jishan Ahmadkhan Pathan (62), Mallikarjun Channappa Gangadhar (55), Shivakumar Talwar (42), and Jishan D Sirsangi and Basavaraj Shankarappa Kotagi (39 each).Of the 73,691 votes reported in the counting figures, 63,446 were valid and 10,245 were rejected.Polling was held on Oct 23, with 73,658 of 97,400 registered voters casting their ballots, recording a turnout of 75.62%. The electorate included 45,110 men and 28,548 women.Sankanur’s victory gives the BJP another term in the constituency and leaves the Congress confronting the political implications of a failed campaign despite the involvement of its senior leadership.Eom/guru/dwd/28-10
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