On Monday, the Supreme Court of India provided interim relief to TD Rajegowda, a Congress leader representing Sringeri constituency in Karnataka, allowing him to continue serving as MLA despite a recent recount that declared BJP candidate DN Jeevaraj as the winner. The Supreme Court's bench, comprising Justices Sanjay Kumar and K Vinod Chandran, ordered the restoration of the status quo ante, indicating that the Returning Officer's re-verification of already validated postal ballots was likely invalid. This decision comes in the wake of a legal challenge following the 2023 Karnataka Assembly elections, where Rajegowda initially won by a narrow margin of 201 votes. The Karnataka High Court had previously ordered a recount, which led to a revised result that deducted 255 votes from Rajegowda's tally. Rajegowda's appeal against this decision is set to be heard again on May 21.