Congress's Priyanka Jarkiholi wins Chikkodi seat, defeats BJP's seasoned veteran Annasaheb Jolle

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Congress candidate Priyanka Jarkiholi has won the Chikkodi assembly seat in Karnataka, defeating the sitting Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Annasaheb Jolle by a margin of 90,834 votes.

The high-stakes showdown took place between 27-year-old Priyanka, daughter of Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Satish Jarkiholi, and 60-year-old seasoned incumbent Jolle.

The constituency, once considered a bastion of the Congress, has, over a period of time, slipped from the party’s control and has been with the BJP since 2004.

The electoral showdown is emblematic of a broader power struggle between two influential political families of the district — the Jarkiholis and the Jolles.

Priyanka has been leveraging the influence and experience of her father, Satish Jarkiholi, who is considered the district’s tallest leader. An MBA, Priyanka has been involved in social activities through the Jarkiholi Foundation and also campaigned for her father in the Assembly elections.

Meanwhile, BJP’s seasoned incumbent Jolle had secured a ticket for the second time and is relying heavily on the popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the votes of the 4.8 lakh-strong Lingayat community to secure victory.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Jolle had won by a margin of 1.17 lakh votes against Prakash Hukkeri of Congress.

A well-known industrialist and businessman in Chikkodi, Jolle’s family have established their dominance in Chikkodi over the past decade via cooperative unions, educational institutions, and various other entities across Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Goa.

His wife Shashikala Jolle, a former minister, is the MLA from Nipani, and the family has strong grassroots connections across the constituency.

However, this time around, several prominent BJP leaders, including former MPs Umesh Katti and Prabhakar Kore, were reportedly unhappy about repeating Jolle, even as attempts were being made by the top brass to pacify them.