As a significant boost to JD(S), the president post of Mangalore Taluk Panchayat too has gone to JD(S) instead of BJP, thus proving its luck both in ZP and TP on a same day. Shriyala G Hegde of JD(S) was elected as the president of the TP, while Suresh Shetty of BJP became the vice-president. She was the former Vice-President of Taluk Panchayat.

As agreed earlier, JD(S)-BJP coalition in Mangalore Taluk Panchayat should have shared the president’s post for ten months each during the second term. Importantly, the BJP candidate should have become the president for the first ten months, followed by the JD(S) representative.

However, in the dramatic political game took place on Saturday, the JD(S) candidate won the presidential post by securing 19 votes in the Taluk Panchayat having a total of 37 seats. Her opponent, Congress candidate Sandhya S Shetty (Bala)  secured 18 votes.

Suresh Shetty (Ekkaru) and Ranganath Shetty (Kilpady) from JD(S)-BJP coalition and R K Prithwiraj (Kukkepadav) and Khalid Yusuf (Adyar) from Congress had filed nominations for the vice-president’s post.

Ranganath Shetty and Prithwiraj withdrew their nominations, leaving a direct fight between Suresh Shetty and Khalid Yusuf. Suresh Shetty emerged victorious with 19 votes while Mr Yusuf secured only 18 votes.

Among the 37 seats in the Mangalore TP, 16 are from Congress, 15 from BJP, 4 JD(S) and two from CPM.

Though the BJP members react that they have accepted the development as it came, the dissatisfaction appears at the very surface. What will be the consequences of the Saturday’s development on the ‘friendship’ of BJP and JD(S) in the days to come? Answer is left to the time.

Assistant Commissioner Sameer Shukla and Tahsildar Raju Mogaveera were present during the election.