Editor's Pick: Karnataka Elections | Congress snatches BJP’s only South Indian state

In what appeared to be in consonance with Karnataka’s tendency to not re-elect incumbent governments, Congress won an unambiguous mandate – securing 135 seats in the 224-seat Vidha Soudha elections which concluded on Saturday. The national party increased its seats from 80 (back in 2018) to 135 whilst the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) fell to 66 from 104 (back in 2018). The Janata Dal Secular (JDS) which was mostly relying on a potential hung assembly to revive its fortunes managed to bag 19 seats against 37 in the previous state elections. Reacting to the win, senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said the state closed down the ‘nafrat ka bazaar’ (marketplace for hate) and opened ‘mohabat ki dukaanein’ (shops of love). A visibly emotional Karnataka State Congress President D.K. Shivkumar told presspersons that he had promised Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and her daughter Priyanka Gandhi, when they visited him in jail, that he would deliver in Karnataka. The win was of particular importance to the national party which is dealing with scepticism about its political future. Thus, the victory sent out a powerful message that it is not a spent force and potentially putting former president Rahul Gandhi as a prominent character of opposition politics nationally. Further, the victory also sets the momentum for the national party in the run-up to the 2024 general elections. It also marks a major setback for the BJP which lost its only South Indian state. The primary challenges before the Congress now would be to provide stability in the state – which has seen three Chief Ministers in the past five years – and implementing its election manifesto of “five guarantees” catering to the welfare of lower income communities in the run-up to the 2024 elections. Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Head over to our newsletter subscription page to sign up for Editor’s Pick and more. Click here. The Hindu’s Profiles Eknath Shinde | The chosen rebel Kemal Kilicdaroglu | Erdogan’s rival Meiteis | Clash of clans in Manipur The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz Which State government has banned the screening of The Kerala Story? Tamil Nadu Uttar Pradesh Karnataka West Bengal To know the answer and to play the full quiz, click here. [logo] Editor's Pick 14 May 2023 [The Hindu logo] In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [Arrow]( [Open in browser]( [Mail icon]( [More newsletters]( Karnataka Elections | Congress snatches BJP’s only South Indian state securing absolute majority In what appeared to be in consonance with Karnataka’s tendency to not re-elect incumbent governments, [Congress won an unambiguous mandate]( – securing 135 seats in the 224-seat Vidha Soudha elections which concluded on Saturday. The national party increased its seats from 80 (back in 2018) to 135 whilst the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) fell to 66 from 104 (back in 2018). The Janata Dal Secular (JDS) which was mostly relying on a potential hung assembly to revive its fortunes managed to bag 19 seats against 37 in the previous state elections. Reacting to the win, senior Congress leader [Rahul Gandhi said]( state closed down the ‘nafrat ka bazaar’ (marketplace for hate) and opened ‘mohabat ki dukaanein’ (shops of love). A visibly emotional Karnataka State Congress President D.K. Shivkumar told presspersons that he had promised Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and her daughter Priyanka Gandhi, when they visited him in jail, that he would deliver in Karnataka. The win was of particular importance to the national party which is dealing with scepticism about its political future. Thus, the victory sent out a powerful message that it is not a spent force and potentially putting former president Rahul Gandhi as a prominent character of opposition politics nationally. Further, the victory also sets the momentum for the national party in the run-up to the 2024 general elections. It also marks a major setback for the BJP which lost its only South Indian state. The primary challenges before the Congress now would be to provide stability in the state – which has seen three Chief Ministers in the past five years – and implementing its election manifesto of “five guarantees” catering to the welfare of lower income communities in the run-up to the 2024 elections. Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Head over to our newsletter subscription page to sign up for Editor’s Pick and more. [Click here](. The Hindu’s Profiles [Arrow][Eknath Shinde | The chosen rebel]( [Arrow][Kemal Kilicdaroglu | Erdogan’s rival]( [Arrow][Meiteis | Clash of clans in Manipur]( The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz Which State government has banned the screening of The Kerala Story? - Tamil Nadu - Uttar Pradesh - Karnataka - West Bengal To know the answer and to play the full quiz, [click here](. 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