NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday took a swipe at the Congress over its performance in the recent legislative council elections across four states. Congress failed to secure a single victory in polls held across Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Maharashtra.Taking to X, the Prime Minsiter wrote, “MLC elections in 28 seats across 4 big states – Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar and Karnataka. Elections held using ballot papers. Guess how many seats Congress won?”The remark came after the Congress drew a blank in Karnataka, where the BJP-Janata Dal (Secular) alliance swept all four legislative council seats despite the Congress being in power in the state. The results also saw the Congress lose its sitting Bengaluru Teachers’ constituency to the JD(S).The prime minister’s reference to ballot papers comes amid the opposition’s repeated allegations of irregularities in electronic voting machines (EVMs) and demands for greater transparency in the electoral process.The Congress suffered its biggest setback in Karnataka, where the BJP retained three seats and the JD(S) wrested Bengaluru Teachers’ from the ruling party.
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JD(S) candidate A P Ranganath defeated sitting Congress MLC Puttanna by 908 votes, securing 10,810 votes against his rival’s 9,902.The BJP retained the North-East Teachers’, South-East Graduates’ and West Graduates’ constituencies. The results came despite campaigning by chief minister Siddaramaiah, deputy chief minister D K Shivakumar and other senior Congress leaders.In Uttar Pradesh, the BJP won four of the 11 legislative council seats, while the Samajwadi Party secured two, with counting continuing in some constituencies.Bihar saw setbacks for both the Congress and the BJP. Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party opened its account in the state Legislative Council after candidate Suresh Prasad Rai defeated sitting Congress MLC Madan Mohan Jha by 324 votes in the Darbhanga Teachers’ constituency.

