Congress Suffers Major Setback: Ballot Papers Fail to Save It from ‘Vote Chori’ Rout

The Congress party suffered a major setback ahead of the November 1 rally at Ramlila Maidan against the ongoing SIR process and to demand the resignation of CEC Gyaneshwar Kumar, alleging vote chori.

The Congress party drew a blank in the 28 MLC elections held across UP, Maharashtra, Bihar and Karnataka. Earlier, the Congress had four seats out of 28. Elections to MLC seats are held not by EVMs but by ballot paper. The Congress party and their allies have been demanding that the government revert back to paper ballot regime.

These elections have made the ‘Vote Chori’ narrative invalid, the BJP said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday taunted the Congress party for its dismal show in the MLC elections despite the use of paper ballots.

"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?" Modi said in a post on 'X'.

The Congress drew a blank in Karnataka, where it was a Vokkaliga-dominated seat, and the Chief Minister D K Shivkumar himself is a Vokkaliga.

But the Congress party still refuses to accept the reality. The party leader Rashid Alvi says that in any MLC election, it is the ruling party which wins because they put pressure on the voters through the administration. When asked if that were the case, why did Congress lose in Karnataka, he fumbled and said he does not know about Karnataka, but Congress believes in free and fair elections and so might not have put pressure on voters.

The former CM B S Yediyurappa said the NDA’s victory in the Karnataka MLC elections was a glaring example of informed voters debunking the ‘Vote Chori’ propaganda of the Congress.

The Veteran BJP leader demanded that Chief Minister D K Shivakumar step down in the wake of the poll results. The BJP won three seats, and its ally JD(S) secured one seat in the MLC elections, which were held using ballot papers.

“This was an election conducted using ballot papers, not EVMs. This was an election to the Teachers' and Graduates' constituencies, which we won, which shows how well informed the voters are,” he said.

Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Wednesday said the Congress would respectfully accept the people's verdict in the Legislative Council elections for four seats, acknowledging that the party fell short of its expectations and would undertake a detailed review of the results.

The Congress expected to win two seats, but that did not materialise, he said, adding that the party would analyse the message given by the people and take corrective measures.

In Uttar Pradesh, BJP won five legislative council seats and the Samajwadi Party three as results were announced on Wednesday for the biennial elections held in 28 upper house constituencies across four states.

Elections to the six teachers' and five graduates' constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, four each in Bihar, two each in Karnataka, and three graduates' and two teachers' constituencies in Maharashtra were held on October 23.

The Congress lost ground in western Maharashtra after it failed to retain a seat in the state Legislative Council on Wednesday, with the BJP defeating its candidate. However, its alliance partner NCP (SP) retained its seat by defeating the BJP.

“The Congress candidate’s loss is a big jolt to the party in western Maharashtra where party leaders control a massive network of educational institutes with a large number of teacher voters,” a Congress leader said.

Five Maharashtra Legislative Council seats went to polls: the Aurangabad, Pune and Nagpur Graduates’ constituencies and the Amravati and Pune Teachers’ constituencies.

The Jan Suraaj Party opened its account in Bihar, where the BJP, the JD(U), the RJD and an Independent have won one seat each.

Jan Suraaj Party's Suresh Prasad Rai defeated sitting Congress MLC Madan Mohan Jha by 324 votes in the Darbhanga Teachers seat in Bihar.

BJP candidate Narendra Prasad Singh trounced his nearest rival, independent nominee Bhushan Kumar Jha, to win the Tirhut Teachers' constituency.

In the Patna Graduates constituency, JD(U)’s Neeraj Kumar defeated the RJD candidate. BJP sitting MLC from Patna Teachers seat, Nawal Kishor Yadav, has lost to RJD’s Sanjiv Kumar, sources said.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gowri V

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A Journey of Three Decades Time passes faster than we realise. What feels like a journey that began only yesterday has today grown into more than three decades of a meaningful and fulfilling life devoted to education, journalism, and the empowerment of young minds. My professional journey began with journalism training in New Delhi in 1979. I went on to work as an independent journalist, drawing on my fluency in both English and Telugu. Over the years, I have edited and worked on Telugu articles in both languages, an experience that strengthened my command of language and sharpened my understanding of society, people, and contemporary issues. Yet, my principal profession and enduring passion have always been teaching. My decision to become a teacher was not merely a career choice—it was a calling. Teaching offered me the rare privilege of inspiring young minds, guiding them through their formative years, and making a lasting difference in their lives. I found immense satisfaction in simplifying complex concepts, nurturing curiosity, encouraging independent thought, and building confidence among students. Every moment in the classroom—every question, every moment of discovery, and every spark of understanding—reminded me why I had chosen this path: to empower young people through knowledge, values, and essential life skills. My teaching career began at the grassroots level as a Montessori teacher and gradually progressed to the position of Vice Principal. I had the opportunity to work in reputed educational institutions, including Dilsukhnagar Public School in Hyderabad, where I shouldered both teaching and administrative responsibilities. Although I have always considered myself, at heart, a teacher, my administrative experience enabled me to understand and contribute to the education system from a much broader perspective. For my students, I have always tried to be an approachable and dependable presence—someone they could turn to not only for academic support, but also for guidance and emotional encouragement. At the same time, I developed a reputation as a firm disciplinarian who believed that integrity, fairness, responsibility, and discipline were fundamental to education. I was also consistently appreciated for maintaining clear communication with parents and staff and for ensuring that examinations and other academic processes were conducted with transparency, fairness, and efficiency. As my career progressed, however, I began to feel that academic education alone was not enough. This realization led me to work more closely with students following the SSC and CBSE curricula, while consciously bringing life-skills education into my teaching. I came to understand that education becomes truly meaningful when it prepares children not merely to pass examinations, but to face life. Teaching emotional resilience, self-reliance, social awareness, communication, decision-making, and other practical life skills often had a deeper and more lasting impact than academic achievement alone. I saw how these skills could help students navigate challenges with greater confidence, maturity, and responsibility. My academic background provided a strong foundation for this approach. My degree in Psychology from the University of Madras helped me develop a deeper understanding of young people's minds, their emotional needs, and the influence of their family and social environments. My M.A. in Telugu with First Class from Osmania University.

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