Bengaluru, Oct. 29 -- The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Janata Dal (Secular) alliance won all four Karnataka legislative council seats, delivering a major blow to the ruling Congress. The four seats were reserved for teachers and university graduates across Bengaluru and surrounding districts. The results do not alter the overall balance of power in the 75-member legislative council, where Congress currently has 38 members. The BJP's tally in the council will rise to 27, and the JD(S)'s to seven. Five seats earmarked for government nominations are vacant. "DK, it's done, bro! NDA SWEEPS 4/4 Teachers' and Graduates' constituencies in the MLC elections!" the BJP said in a post on X, taking a swipe at chief minister DK Shivakumar. Reacting to the results, Shivakumar said the Congress would accept the voters' verdict and examine the reasons behind the outcome. "We respectfully accept the verdict given by the voters in the Legislative Council elections," he said. The JD(S) wrested the Bengaluru Teachers' constituency from the Congress, with AP Ranganath defeating sitting legislative council member and former deputy chairman Puttanna by 908 votes. Ranganath secured 10,810 votes against Puttanna's 9,902. The BJP retained the North-East Teachers' seat, where Shashil G Namoshi defeated Congress candidate Sharanappa Mattur. The party also won the West Graduates' constituency through S V Sankanur and the South-East Graduates' constituency through KM Suresh, completing the alliance's sweep. Union minister and JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy described the result as a mandate extending beyond the four constituencies. "This victory is historic. A clear mandate for the 2028 Assembly elections. This election has shown that there is strength in unity and alliance," he said in a post on X. JD(S) youth wing president Nikhil Kumaraswamy took a swipe at the Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over allegations that voting machines were used to steal elections. "Now that educated teachers voted on paper right under your government's nose, what's today's excuse, 'Paper Chori'?" he wrote on X....