The Karnataka Legislative Assembly has disqualified Congress MLA Vinay Kulkarni from the Dharwad constituency following his conviction in a decade-old murder case. The disqualification, effective from April 15, 2026, the date of his conviction, has rendered the Dharwad seat vacant.
According to an official notification issued today by the Assembly Secretariat, Kulkarni stands disqualified under Article 191(1)(e) of the Constitution of India read with Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. The disqualification will continue for a further six years after his release, unless stayed by a competent court. The notification states that “one seat of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly has fallen vacant” as a result.
Congress MLA Vinay Kulkarni has been disqualified from the Karnataka Legislative Assembly following his conviction by a Bengaluru sessions court in a criminal case, as per a notification issued on May 2. The disqualification takes effect from April 15, 2026, the date of… pic.twitter.com/uueKAvIoib
— IANS (@ians_india) May 2, 2026
Kulkarni, a three-time MLA and former minister, was convicted along with 15 others by the Special Court for Elected Representatives in Bengaluru on April 15 in connection with the murder of BJP Zilla Panchayat member Yogesh Gowda. The victim was hacked to death at a gymnasium in Dharwad on June 15, 2016. The court sentenced Kulkarni and the others to life imprisonment on 17 April, describing the case as a “grim portrait of the criminalisation of politics.”
A prominent Lingayat leader from north Karnataka, Kulkarni has been a key face for the Congress in the region. He was a minister in the Siddaramaiah government at the time of the murder. The Congress has maintained that Kulkarni is a victim of political vendetta, with senior leader D.K. Shivakumar terming the case a “BJP conspiracy.” Kulkarni has challenged the conviction and is expected to seek a stay on the sentence.
The disqualification will not immediately affect the Congress government’s majority in the 224-member Assembly, as the party holds a comfortable margin. However, it necessitates a by-election in the Dharwad constituency, which could become a prestige battle between the Congress and the BJP in the politically sensitive Lingayat-dominated belt. The notification has been forwarded to the Chief Electoral Officer of Karnataka, the Election Commission of India, and other relevant authorities.
