Karnataka Council polls: Coordinated efforts helped NDA allies make a clean sweep

BJP leaders celebrate after winning four seats in the Karnataka Legislative Council (MLC) polls, in Hubballi, on October 28, 2026.

The clean sweep of elections to Legislative Council from the four teachers and graduates constituencies in Karnataka by NDA partners BJP and JD (S) against the ruling Congress is being attributed to the “unified and coordinated” efforts between them that percolated to the grassroots level.

While the BJP has retained the three seats (South East Graduates, North East Teachers, West Graduates) which it has won the last four times, the JD(S) has managed to wrest the Bengaluru Teachers’ constituency, which had become a fortress of Congress candidate Puttanna, who had won from the seat five consecutive times.

The BJP and JD(S) entered into an alliance during 2024 Lok Sabha polls at the instance of their national leaders. However, barring the first phase of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls in which the alliance partners managed to win 12 of the total 14 seats, the potential of the alliance had not been fully tapped. This was being blamed on a lack of unity and co-ordination between the allies due to mistrust and the fear of losing identity.

However, the compelling need for political survival appears to have made the allies understand the importance of working together as they have to now take on Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar known for aggressive strategies and organisational skills. The BJP central leadership has time and again cautioned the party State unit against being complacent by thinking that it would return to power naturally given the State’s 40-year political trend of not re-electing the ruling party.

The co-ordination between the alliance partners started improving in the Monsoon session of the legislature session where their combined efforts became successful in forcing Minister B. Nagendra to step down. However, there were signs of the alliance becoming weak again when the JD(S) was not part of the BJP’s Ballari padayatra. But the subsequent efforts by the top leaders of both the parties resulted in ensuring better co-ordination.

According to a senior NDA leader, following the co-ordination committee meeting involving leaders of both the parties, meetings of elected representatives and grassroots functionaries of the two allies were held to ensure that a strong message of unity reaches the workers on the field ahead of elections..

“The bottom line is that we need to fight unitedly if we have to survive. The results of these polls have clearly indicated that the BJP-JD(S) combination is an effective political tool as we have managed to wrest the politically challenging Bengaluru Teachers’ seat,” he noted. Leader of Opposition R. Ashok had spearheaded the NDA campaign in this seat while other top leaders from both the parties worked on the ground in all the constituencies.

“The earlier campaign by the NDA leaders against the failures of the government, including handling of drought, slackening development works, KPSC irregularities and sting video episode too played a role in the NDA’s victory,” observed another senior leader who was part of the NDA campaign.

The victory has given a boost to the morale of the NDA alliance partners who have now declared that they would work with the same zeal in the 2028 Assembly elections. The big victory margins in the northern constituencies have dispelled the belief that the alliance would not work well in the northern areas, say leaders.

As these elections covered 133 assembly constituencies spread over 19 of the total 31 in the district, the alliance leaders feel that they must use the opportunity to further consolidate their political hold. According to a senior BJP leader, both the allies are now expected to take up several joint campaigns ahead of the 2028 Assembly polls.