The ruling Congress strengthened its grip on the Kalaburagi City Corporation on Saturday, with Ajmal Ahmed Gola and Farhanaz Khusro Jahagirdar winning the Mayor and Deputy Mayor elections, respectively, giving the party a fresh mandate to lead the civic body for its 24th term.

Mr. Gola, a councillor from Ward 21, and Ms. Farhanaz, a councillor from Ward 20, secured 35 votes each. The 55-member corporation requires 33 votes for a simple majority.

The BJP councillors, Gururaj Pattan and Meghana Kalaskar, who contested for the Mayor and Deputy Mayor posts, respectively, polled 29 votes each.

The election was closely watched within the Congress, with several councillors expressing interest in the Mayor’s post. Former Mayor Syed Ahmed and Ali Khan, the brother of former Minister Rahim Khan, were among those who had expressed interest in the post, along with Mr. Gola.

The choice of Mr. Gola followed brief discussions and consultations with Congress councillors, involving district in-charge Minister Priyank Kharge, Radhakrishna Doddamani, MP, and MLAs Kaneez Fatima and Allamprabhu Patil. The consultations helped the party arrive at a common choice and present a united front in the election.

Kalaburagi Regional Commissioner Zaheera Naseem, who was the election officer, conducted the election process. The election was originally scheduled for August 7 but was postponed owing to unforeseen circumstances. The Regional Commissioner issued a revised notification fixing August 29 as the date for the election.

Mr. Doddamani, Ms. Fatima, Mr. Patil, Basavaraj Mattimadu, MLA, and MLCs Jagadev Guttedar, B.G. Patil, Thippannappa Kamaknoor, and Chandrashekhar Patil Humnabad were present during the election process.

Though the BJP and the JD(S) are allies in the State, the councillors of the two parties failed to ensure effective coordination during the corporation election.

Interestingly, both the Mayor and Deputy Mayor posts are held by the councillors from wards falling under the Kalaburagi North Assembly constituency.

Speaking to the press after his election, Mr. Gola thanked the party leadership and Congress councillors for their support. He said his immediate focus would be on improving garbage disposal and drinking water supply, upgrading roads, and strengthening property tax collection.

He also said the corporation would identify encroachments on its properties and take appropriate action against those responsible.