World | India
Indian opposition BJP wins Karnataka state poll
India's main opposition party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), has won an election in the southern state of Karnataka, extending a winning streak ahead of a national vote due by early 2009.
- Agencies
- Published: 17:46 May 25, 2008
Bangalore: India's main opposition party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), has won an election in the southern state of Karnataka, extending a winning streak ahead of a national vote due by early 2009.
The BJP victory surprised many pollsters and analysts and was another blow for the centre-left Congress party, which leads India's ruling coalition government.
The BJP won 111 of 224 seats, according to provisional figures released by the state election commission - its first outright win in one of India's four southern states. It caps a string of recent state wins.
Congress won only 77 seats, the provisional results showed, and conceded defeat. Final results were due later on Sunday.
Venkaiah Naidu, a senior BJP leader, said voters had tired of the Congress because of rising inflation, bomb attacks in Indian cities and debt problems faced by Indian farmers.
"I am very happy that we have come to power in the south. This will galvanise the party for the general elections," he told reporters in Bangalore, the state capital.
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"I don't think the Congress will dare go for early elections with these kind of defeats in several states."
"I would like to concede defeat on behalf of the Congress," said S.M. Krishna, the party's main campaigner. "It is a disappointment. ... I hope they do a good job taking care of the interests of the state without dividing the state on religious lines."
B.S. Yeddyurappa, a BJP politician who paints himself as a champion of farmers, is set to become the state's chief minister. He was chief minister for barely a week before his coalition government fell.
"My top priority will be the development of Karnataka. Special priority will also be given to the development of Bangalore," Yeddyurappa said at a victory rally in the city.
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