It’s celebration time for the Congress after a very long time in Udupi where the BJP has been winning both the Assembly and parliament polls for several years. The streets of the temple town were filled with people carring the Tricolor and shouting slogans like "Congress Zindabad," "Soniaji Zindabad," "Jayaprakash Hegde Ge Jayavagali." Party workers garlanded winning candidate Jayaprakash Hegde and took him out in a procession soon after the results came in.
While some Congress supporters took out motor rallies, others distributed sweets among people on the streets. "A decade ago, the Congress was strong in Udupi district. But we have been losing the parliamentary polls since 2004 and hold only one of the five Assembly seats in the district. Even in the panchayat elections, we have not met with much success. This victory has brought new hope and new life to the party," Somappa, a party worker who was celebrating on the streets of Doddanagudde said. "We have been waiting for this day.
For the first time, our leaders have worked together shedding differences. We are really happy," he said. "We are ready for the Assembly elections. We are sure that we can win the Assembly election if we work in the same manner," Laxman, another party worker declared. Congress workers of Dakshina Kannada district too organised victory parades in various places.