Karnataka polls: BJP’s Basavaraj Bommai concedes defeat as Congress maintains comfortable lead

Here are the top developments from Karnataka:

1. As the Congress continued to maintain a comfortable lead above the majority mark in the Karnataka Assembly polls, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday conceded defeat. Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said that the BJP will reorganise itself and make a comeback in the Lok Sabha elections. According to the Election Commission data at 2.08 pm, the Congress won 14 constituencies and was leading in 122 of the 224 Assembly seats in the state. The BJP won seven constituencies and was ahead in 58 seats while the Janata Dal (Secular) won one seat and was leading in 18 seats.
2. The majority mark in the Karnataka Assembly is 113. The BJP contested in all 224 constituencies, the Congress in 223, and the JD(S) in 209.
3. “We have not been able to make the mark, in spite of a lot of effort put in by everyone, including the prime minister and workers of the party,” Bommai told reporters post noon. “We will do a detailed analysis as the results conclude. We will take these results in our stride.”
4. JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy has also accepted defeat, saying that the loss was not final. “I thank the voters for having voted to JD(S),” he said. “Neither for me nor...

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