10.14 pc voting in early hours of voting in Karnataka assembly bypolls

Early hours of voting witnessed a good turnout in the bye-elections held for three Assembly constituencies in Karnataka on 13 November, Wednesday.

The Election Commission of India reported a voting turnout of 10.14 per cent between 7 am and 9 am The bypolls are being held for Channapatna Assembly constituency in Ramanagar district, Sandur Assembly seat in Bellary district and Shiggaon Assembly segment in Haveri district.

The high-profile Channapatna seat saw a turnout of 10.34 per cent of voters, the Shiggaon segment witnessed 10.08 per cent of voting and the Sandur seat saw a 9.99 per cent voter turnout.

Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel, HD Kumaraswamy’s son Nikhil Kumaraswamy is the NDA candidate contesting under the JD(S) symbol from the Channapatna seat. He is also the grandson of former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda.

Former senior BJP leader, CP Yogeshwara is the Congress candidate from here. Former Chief Minister and BJP MP Basavaraj Bommai’s son Bharat Bommai is the BJP candidate from the Shiggaon Assembly constituency. The Congress has fielded Yasir Ahmed Khan Pathan as its candidate.

Annapurna Tukaram, wife of former minister and Congress MP, E. Tukaram is the candidate for the grand old party from the Sandur Assembly segment. The BJP has fielded Bangaru Hanumanthu, State Morcha President as its candidate.

The Congress, BJP and JD(S) have carried out high-voltage campaigning for the bypolls as the results are expected to have a direct impact on state politics.

CM Siddaramaiah, facing allegations of corruption and investigation by the Lokayukta and Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) case will find it difficult to continue in his position if the BJP manages to win all three seats.

The results are also crucial for Union Minister Kumaraswamy to consolidate his position in the BJP at the national level. State BJP President B.Y. Vijayendra will have a difficult time in case of a setback as he is facing internal challenges by senior leaders.

There are 2.36 lakh voters in the Sandur constituency and of these, 1.18 lakh are women. 29 voters belong to the third gender category and there are 153 polling stations. There are 2.32 lakh voters in the Channapatna seat including 1.20 lakh women and 8 third gender voters.

The Vokkaliga and Muslim voters are in large numbers in the constituency. There are 208 polling booths in the constituency. There are a total of 2.37 lakh voters in Shiggaon among which 1.16 lakh are women and 6 are third gender voters. The voting would be held in the 196 polling stations across the constituency.

However, sporadic violence has been reported from certain pockets as bypolls are being held for six Assembly constituencies in West Bengal on Wednesday, 13 November.

There were reports of a shootout during the first two hours of polling at Jagatdal adjacent to Naihati Assembly constituency in North 24 Parganas district, one of the six Assembly constituencies where bypolls are being conducted.

One person, reportedly an associate of the ruling Trinamool Congress, received injuries in the shootout and is currently under treatment at a local hospital.

Eyewitnesses said that crude bombs were also hurled by two groups of clashing individuals in which a couple of persons received minor injuries. Tension has also been reported from Booth Number 200 in Sadarpur area under Haroa also in North 24 Parganas district, as the BJP candidate got engaged in heated conversation with the booth agent of the ruling Trinamool Congress.

Following the development, tension broke out within the polling station between the BJP and Trinamool Congress supporters. The Quick Response Team (QRT) of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) personnel, accompanied by the local police, rushed to the spot and took control of the situation. Till 9 A.M. the average polling percentage in the six Assembly constituencies where bypolls are taking place has been recorded at 14.65 per cent.

The highest polling percentage during that period has been reported from Taldangra at 18 per cent, followed by Madarihat at 15 per cent, Haroa at 14.80 per cent, Naihati at 14.51 per cent, Medinipur at 14.36 per cent and Sitai at 12 per cent, as per statistics provided by the office of Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), West Bengal.

Meanwhile, based on the complaint filed by Leader of Opposition in West Bengal accusing the state police of detaining a BJP worker at Medinipur within his house on polling day, the Election Commission has sought a report from the CEO in the matter.