NEW DELHI, May 8: India’s ruling Congress on Wednesday evicted the opposition Bharatiya Party (BJP) from power in Karnataka, the only southern state where the rightwing Hindu group had successfully imposed its revivalist agenda.

The Congress with about 120 seats won an absolute majority leaving the ruling BJP far behind with fewer than 40 seats in the 224-member assembly.

As votes were counted, the BJP was staring at a humiliating rout in the state where it took power five years ago. It was relegated to the third place behind Janata Dal (Secular) of former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda.

The results followed a split in the BJP when it changed its chief minister accused of corruption. However, the outcome could influence the general elections either way and may not prove to be a huge blessing for the Congress because of the incumbency factor.

Congress strongman in Karnataka Siddharamiah was sanguine in victory.

“It was only expected,” said the man who could be the next chief minister.

Added BJP leader and former chief minister Sadanand Gowda soberly: “We have not been able to rise to the occasion. We could not reach out to the voter with whatever development work we did in Karnataka.”

The BJP, which has seen three chief ministers in five years and found itself split right down the middle with BS Yeddyurappa forming his own party, was way behind with 36 seats.

Even the Janata Dal-S (JD-S) was ahead with 41 seats. And Yeddyurappa’s Karnataka Janata Party (KJP), who left the BJP amid allegations of corruption, made its political debut with an estimated 14 seats.

It was a reversal of fortunes of sorts for the two main parties — the Congress, readying for power in Bangalore, is on the backfoot in New Delhi as the BJP demands the resignations of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as well as union ministers Pawan Kumar Bansal and Ashwani Kumar.