Voting began in Karnataka on Wednesday morning capping a 40-day-long intense campaigning where all major players went all out to woo the electorate.
The voting that began at 7 am amid tight security will go on till 6 in the evening. The votes will be counted on May 13.
A total of 5,31,33,054 electors are eligible to cast their vote in 58,545 polling stations across the state, where 2,615 candidates are in the fray. Among the electors, 2,67,28,053 are male, 2,64,00,074 female and 4,927 "others", while among the candidates 2,430 are male, 184 female and one from third gender.
Tight security
The Election Commission said that 84,119 State Police Officers and 58,500 CAPF police in 650 CoYs are on Law and Order and security duty on Wednesday across the state. Besides, the police are on high alert at the border check-posts.
"CEO and DEOs have been instructed to provide all facilitation across more than 58k polling booths set up across 224 ACs," CEC Rajiv Kumar said. Basic facilities like drinking water, toilets, ramps, wheelchairs, electricity, volunteers, shades, help desks and parking facilities have been provided at all the polling stations.
He said there were 996 women-managed booths, 239 booths managed by persons with disabilities, 286 were managed by youths, and 737 theme-based and ethnic polling stations.
Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai with his family after casting vote for Karnataka Assembly elections, in Shiggaon | PTI
High-stakes battle
While the ruling BJP, riding on the Modi juggernaut, wants to break the 38-year jinx -- the state has never voted the incumbent party to power since 1985 -- and tighten the grip on its southern stronghold, the Congress is seeking to wrest power to give the party the much-needed elbow room and momentum to position itself as the main opposition player in the 2024 parliamentary polls.
Also what needs to be seen is, whether the JD (S) will emerge as a "kingmaker" or a "king" by holding the key for government formation, in the event of a hung verdict, as it has done in the past.
Both BJP and Congress are fielding some of their top guns in the major constituencies. This includes CM Bommai (Shiggaon), Leader of Opposition and former CM Siddaramaiah (Varuna), JD(S) leader Kumaraswamy (Channapatna) and D K Shivakumar (Kanakapura).
Constituencies that witnessed intense campaigning include Hubli-Dharwad Central where former chief minister Jagadish Shettar, a turncoat, is contesting this election. Shettar had recently joined the Congress, quitting BJP.
BY Vijayendra, son of former chief minister BS Yediyurappa, will be contesting from Shikaripura, a stronghold of the latter.
Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge’s son Priyank Kharge will be contesting from the Chittapur Assembly constituency. He was also a former minister in the Siddaramaiah government. Former Karnataka Chief Minister HD Deve Gowda’s grandson Nikhil Kumaraswamy will be contesting from the Ramanagara Assembly constituency after hitting a loss in the 2019 elections.
(With inputs from PTI)
