Ira Puranik Moneycontrol News
If 1,04,475 votes had not gone in favour of Congress in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls, the grand old party would have won only 43 seats, i.e., a seat lesser than the number of seats they had won in 2014.
While this increment of 8 seats hasn't made much of a difference in the overall political scene, the data about margin of votes in some constituencies won by Congress reveals more reasons of worry for the party.
As per the Election Commision's data, out of 52 seats won by Congress, nine seats were won with margins of less than 26,000 votes.
In fact, in Andaman and Nicobar constituency, Congress' Kuldeep Rai Sharma managed to win by only 1,407 votes, defeating BJP’s Vishal Jolly.
In Koraput, Odisha, Congress' Saptagiri Sankar Ulaka defeated BJD’s Kausalya Hikaka by just 3,613 votes.
Similarly, 5,219 votes were all it took for Congress' candidate Komatireddy Venkat Reddy to pluck victory from the runner-up TRS candidate Dr. Boora Narsaiah Goud in Telangana.
Voter margins in close-call constituencies where Congress secured victory
| S. No | Constituency | Name of winning candidate (INC) | Name of the candidate who lost | Party of the losing candidate | Margin by which INC won the seats |
| 1. | Andaman and Nicobar Islands | Kuldeep P Rai Sharma | Vishal Jolly | BJP | 1,407 |
| 2. | South Goa, Goa | Cosme Francisco Caitano Sardinha | Adv. Narendra Sawaikar | BJP | 9,755 |
| 3. | Koraput, Odisha | Saptagiri Sankar Ulaka | Kausalya Hikaka | Biju Janata Dal | 3,613 |
| 4. | Bhongir, Telangana | Komati Reddy Venkat Reddy | Dr. Boora Narsaiah Goud | Telangana Rashtra Samithi | 5,219 |
| 5. | Malkajgiri, Telangana | Anumula Revanth | Rajashekhar Reddy Mari | Telangana Rashtra Samithi | 10,919 |
| 6. | Nowgong, Assam | Pradyut Bordoloi | Sri Rupak Sharma | BJP | 16, 752 |
| 7. | Palakkad, Kerala | V K Sreekandan | M B Rajesh | CPI(M) | 11,637 |
| 8. | Jalandhar, Punjab | Santokh Singh Chaudhary | Charanjit Singh Atwal | Shiromani Akali Dal | 19,491 |
| 9. | Nalgonda, Telangana | Uttam Kumar Reddy Nalamada | Vermireddy Narasimha Reddy | Telangana Rashtra Samithi | 25,682 |
| Total votes | 1,04,475 |
In as many as five seats other than the ones named above, Congress' winning margin of votes was less than 20,000 votes.
These five seats include Palakkad in Kerala and Jalandhar in Punjab - the states where Congress has shown some grit these elections.
The hotly contested elections this year have resulted in a resounding win for the BJP under Narendra Modi but it has thrown more questions for the Congress party to reflect and find out went wrong.
The slim margins suggest that Congress is facing trouble not only from its arch-rival BJP but is consistently failing against strong regional parties as well.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
