Election Opinion

The newly announced candidates include several notable figures, with former Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat contesting from Haridwar, former Haryana Chief Minister ML Khattar fielded from Karnal, and Union Ministers Nitin Gadkari and Piyush Goyal contesting from Nagpur and Mumbai North, respectively.

The electoral fate of top guns--Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, Congress veterans Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar and JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy among others will be sealed during the day-long exercise.

Karnataka voted today. In the high-stakes battle, a combative Congress is eyeing a comeback while the BJP is looking to script history to retain its southern bastion. The election to the 224-seat assembly saw a high-octane campaign that, at times, turned controversial with the level of public discourse plummeting. With the stakes being high in the mega battle of ballots, the major political parties in contention -- the BJP, Congress and JD(S) -- have made a strong pitch to boost their electoral prospects. Voting took place from 7 am to 6 pm amid tight security arrangements. The ballots will be counted on Saturday. Stay tuned to Asianet Newsable for the latest updates from the ground.

Karnataka is all set to witness an electoral battle as the state goes to polls on May 10. The 224-member Karnataka Assembly will see a triangular contest between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Opposition Congress and the Janata Dal (Secular).

The Election Commission has called upon the voters to participate in the voting process voluntarily without succumbing to any desire, lure, influence or threat. In this election, 5,30,85,566 voters including 2,66,82,156 male, 2,63,98,483 female and 4,927 other voters are eligible to vote in the state.

Karnataka Election 2023: The Lingayat and Vokkaliga voters will play a major role in the state. Lingayats comprise 17 percent of the population and Vokkaligas 11 percent. Significantly, Karnataka is the only state in the South where BJP is in power.

A senior official from Goa Chief Minister's Office said it is a practice to give a holiday when there are elections in neighbouring states. He also claimed a holiday was declared in Karnataka on the day of polling in Goa last year.

Karnataka Election 2023: The Prime Minister also lauded the 3.5-year term of the double-engine government in Karnataka, and said, "BJP government's decisive, focused and futuristic approach is contributing significantly to Karnataka's economy."

The Congress also shared the audio clip where the BJP leader allegedly said to 'wipe-off' Kharge family.  However, the audio clip has not been verified independently by Asianet Newsable and the BJP is yet to respond to the allegations.

The Prime Minister also said the movie 'The Kerala Story' is said to be a work based on the terrorists' deceitful policies and conspiracies in just one state and accused the Congress of indulging in backdoor political bargaining with people having terror inclinations.

Sharing one of the posters of the "corruption rate list", former Congress president Rahul Gandhi said the people of Karnataka will give the BJP only 40 seats as the party seems to be in love with the number.

Among the Congress candidates in the state, Deshpande (76) is the senior most contesting for the ninth consecutive time. He also equals AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge's record of winning the greatest number of assembly polls in the state.

Karnataka Election 2023: Senior Congress leader and former Karnataka chief minister Veerappa Moily said there was no suggestion before the party to ban the Bajrang Dal. Addressing reporters in Udupi, Moily also said that state governments did not have the right to ban such organisations. 

Karnataka Election 2023: In another incident, the Bengaluru Police on April 13 caught two persons with Rs 1 crore unaccounted for cash in an auto in near the City Market area. Similarly, I-T department carried out raids at the office of a real estate developer in Hubballi.

The latest opinion poll, commissioned by Asianet News Network and conducted by Jan Ki Baat between April 15 and May 1 after ticket distribution and nomination filing by key candidates of three major political parties in the state, shows the BJP gaining ground while the JD-S is struggling to hold on to its vote bank.