Counting for 102 Karnataka ULBs begins; JD(S), Congress plan to extend alliance to civic bodies to keep BJP out of power

The counting for 102 urban local bodies polls that took place across Karnataka on 31 August has begun, amid tight security. The polling was held in 2,529 wards, spread over 29 city municipalities, 53 town municipalities and 23 town panchayats, and in 135 wards of three city corporations of the state.

The civic election was earlier scheduled to be held in 105 urban local bodies. However, polling in three areas was postponed due to the onset of heavy rains and subsequent flash floods in Kodagu district.

In all, 8,340 candidates, including 2,306 from the Congress, 2,203 from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and 1,397 from the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) contested in the ULBs, while 814 did in three city corporations, including 135 from Congress, 130 from BJP and 129 from JD(S), with the remaining as Independents.

A JD(S) official on Saturday said the ruling JD(S) and the Congress in Karnataka would extend their coalition alliance to the urban local bodies (ULBs) across the state to keep the opposition BJP out of power.

“In the event of either party not getting a majority on its own in the ULB elections, we will have post-poll alliance to rule the local bodies as we did to form the coalition government in the state after the 12 May assembly election threw a hung House with a split verdict,” the official told IANS.

Elections to 105 ULBs, including three city corporations, were held on Friday across the southern state, with a record 68 per cent voter turnout.

“Though we are hoping to secure a majority in city, town and panchayat wards in our strongholds, especially in the old Mysuru region, we are ready to take the support of the Congress to run the local bodies with a majority,” said the  JD(S) official.

The JD(S) is also ready to support the Congress in the local bodies where it will fall short of a majority so as to keep the BJP from ruling them.

“We are expecting to secure a majority in many city and town municipalities across the state though we contested against the JD(S) and the BJP. We hope the JD(S) will reciprocate our gesture to support it in forming the coalition government in the state,” a Congress spokesman told IANS.

In the 2013 ULB elections held in 4,976 seats, the Congress had won 1,960 seats, while the BJP and the JD(S) had won 905 seats each, and Independents had bagged the remaining 1,206 seats.

“Though the coordination committee of the alliance partners discussed the prospects of the post-poll tie-up in ULBs, a decision to that effect will be taken after all the results of the wards are declared by Monday night,” added the Congress official.

Follow the latest tally of votes here

With inputs from agencies