The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday invalidated the election of Congress MLA K.Y. Nanjegowda from the state's Malur constituency. The High Court has ordered a recount of votes, and the results must be declared within four weeks.
The Karnataka High Court was hearing a plea moved by Bharatiya Janata Party candidate K.S. Manjunath Gowda, who lost the election to Nanjegowda during the 2023 assembly polls. A single-judge bench of Justice R. Devdas at the High Court declared Nanjegowda's election invalid after it noted irregularities in the counting process.
The Court's verdict comes after nearly two years of proceedings. Ruling in favour of recounting, the Court directed authorities to conduct recounting of votes within four weeks. The bench also directed the district election officer to secure the video of the counting process during the 2023 assembly polls.
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During the 2023 assembly election, Nanjegowda won from Malur by a margin of 248 votes against the BJP's Manjunath Gowda. Malur is a stronghold of the Congress party, and Nanjegowda had defeated Gowda in the 2018 assembly polls as well.
The Karnataka High Court has, however, put the order on hold for 30 days so that Nanjegowda could approach the Supreme Court. The seat will stand vacated if the apex court does not intervene within that period.