Wednesday, December 28 2005 17:10 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Bangalore: In an outcome of Panchayat Raj polls that may have a bearing on the equations between the two uneasy ruling coalition partners, the Congress in Karnataka is poised to control more than half of 27 Zilla Panchayats.

In the first trial of strength at the grassroot level after the assembly elections, with almost all the results out, the Congress also bagged nearly 50 per cent of the 3657 Taluk Panchayat seats for which the results have been declared.

Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S), perceived as the 'dominant partner' in the state's first-ever coalition Government, is set to control only two ZPs in glaring contrast to the Congress' 14. The verdict is fractured in 11 other ZPs.

The Congress' performance stands out in comparison with that of JDS and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) but looks dim, when judged against its feat in the last Panchayat elections when it wrested control of 26 of the 27 ZPs.

For the BJP, which emerged as the single largest party with 79 seats in the assembly polls but failed to reach the magic figure to be able to govern the state, the results have helped it to make a point that it is not urban-centric and has, in fact, made significant inroads into rural areas.

Out of the 1005 ZP seats with results declared for 999, the BJP has won 152 seats. In the Taluk Panchayats, it has bagged 540 seats, both results showing a noteworthy rise from a mere token presence.

Siddaramaiah's All India Progressive Janata Dal has played spoilsport to the prospects of JDS from which he was virtually shown the exit door after he took on Devegowda and revolted against the alleged domination of the party by his sons. AIPJD won 34 ZP and 145 TP seats.

Another player, former Chief Minister S Bangarappa of Samajvadi Party, has failed to make much impact, winning only nine ZP seats and 35 TP seats, drawing sustenance from his home district of Shimoga.

The outcome has come as a matter of comfort for Chief Minister N Dharam Singh who yesterday said the party would discuss the results threadbare and its central leadership would decide on the future of the coalition.

The question whether the Congress would go in for the snap polls was 'debatable', he had said while making the point that "as of now, the coalition Government is intact."

However, in a guarded response, KPCC President M Mallikarjun Kharge today told reporters that the Congress would not do anything to destabilise the coalition Government.

"There is no threat to the coalition Government from our side."

Kharge said elections to local bodies were different and could not be linked to assembly polls, an issue which would be decided by the central leadership in a broader national context and perspective.

As far as the Congress was concerned, there was no thinking on its part now to opt for mid-term elections, Kharge said.