Modi Mocks Congress Over Paper-Ballot Polls and Its Seat Count, But How Many Did the BJP Win and Retain?

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s jibe at the Congress over its performance in elections conducted using paper ballots has reignited the debate over electronic voting machines (EVMs). But while the Prime Minister challenged the opposition to explain how few seats it won, the results across four states revealed a broader political picture involving incumbent losses, changing party fortunes and the limits of drawing conclusions from a different category of election.

“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 wrote on October 28, questioning the Congress’s criticism of EVMs.

Congress won just one of the 28 seats, with Abhijeet Wanjari retaining the Nagpur Graduates’ constituency in Maharashtra. The BJP won 13 seats, while its allies, the Janata Dal (United), Janata Dal (Secular) and Shiv Sena, secured one each, taking the National Democratic Alliance’s combined tally to 16. The Samajwadi Party (SP) won five seats, while the remaining seats went to Congress, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Prashant Kishor’s Jan Suraaj Party and Independents.

In Uttar Pradesh, the BJP retained six seats, matching its previous tally, while the SP increased its representation from three to five. The SP also made gains in Varanasi, Prime Minister Modi’s parliamentary constituency, where it defeated the BJP in both the Varanasi Teachers’ and Varanasi Graduates’ Legislative Council constituencies. Lal Bihari Yadav won the Teachers’ seat, while Ashutosh Sinha secured the Graduates’ seat. The SP also won the Lucknow Graduates’ seat and the Agra-Aligarh Teachers’ constituency, previously held by an Independent who later joined the BJP.

Karnataka presented a different picture. The BJP retained its three seats, while its ally JD(S) defeated sitting Congress MLC Puttanna in Bengaluru Teachers’ by 908 votes. The alliance won all four constituencies, leaving Congress without a victory. In Bihar, the RJD defeated five-term BJP MLC Nawal Kishore Yadav in Patna Teachers’, while Jan Suraaj won its first Legislative Council seat by defeating sitting Congress MLC Madan Mohan Jha in Darbhanga Teachers’.

Maharashtra gave Congress a notable victory. Wanjari defeated BJP candidate Sudhakar Kohale by 3,271 votes in Nagpur, the home turf of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Union Minister Nitin Gadkari. The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi won three of the state’s five seats, against two for the BJP-led Mahayuti.

Responding to Modi, Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera challenged the Prime Minister to commit to holding all future Lok Sabha and Assembly elections using paper ballots. He also demanded the suspension of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and restoration of 13.3 crore voters whom Congress alleges were illegally deleted.