The BJP suffered a debacle in Chikkamgaluru as all five seats have been won by the Congress. In the last elections held in 2018, the BJP won four of five seats, while Congress won one. This time, including BJP’s national general secretary C.T. Ravi, all candidates suffered defeat.
Congress party leaders including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi had campaigned in the district. During their visits to the district, they recalled their grandmother and former PM Indira Gandhi’s contest in a by-election in 1978 in Chikkamagaluru.
Mr. Ravi, who was elected to the State Assembly four times since 2004 continuously, has been defeated by his former associate H.D. Thammaiah, who joined the Congress just a few days before the elections. Mr. Thammaiah, a Lingayat, succeeded to win the confidence of Congress leaders, including those who were against his candidature.
