Tumkur (Karnataka): Taking a jibe at Janta Dal (Secular) supremo HD Deve Gowda, newly elected BJP MP GS Basavaraj claimed on Saturday that if the former Prime Minister had contested from Hassan district of Karnataka he would have been happier.
In an interview with ETV Bharath, GS Basavaraj claimed, "Since 1978, Gowda could not provide Tumkur residents water and other basic amenities. It is no surprise that he lost."
The newly elected BJP MP further revealed that it was the Modi wave and efforts of his party workers that helped him win the elections.
The fight in Tumkur was seen as a battle between - Lingayats and Vokkaligas - two dominant communities in Karnataka, to which both Basavaraj and Gowda belong to respectively.
The JD(S) patriarch and former prime minister HD Deve Gowda received a big blow as he was defeated in Tumkur constituency by his BJP rival by a margin of over 13,000 votes.
GS Basavaraj secured 5,96,127 votes while Gowda got 5,82,788 votes,
Gowda, the joint candidate of ruling Congress-JDS coalition, chose to contest from Tumkur at the last minute, after vacating Hassan, his home tuft, to grandson Prajwal Revanna.
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