Karnataka assembly election Highlights: Siddaramaiah confident after exit polls | Latest News India - Hindustan Times
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Karnataka assembly election Highlights: Siddaramaiah confident after exit polls

Hindustan Times, Bengaluru and New Delhi | ByHT Correspondents, Bengaluru and New Delhi
May 13, 2018 08:23 AM IST

Karnataka assembly elections 2018: Voting started early on Saturday after a high-voltage campaign by the Congress and the BJP. Here are the highlights of the election and the exit polls.

TV exit polls are predicting seats for political parties after voting in Karnataka elections ended at 6pm on Saturday and the state waited for ballots to be counted on May 15.

Karnataka elections: Minister DK Shivakumar at a polling booth in Kanakapura on Saturday.(HT Photo)
Karnataka elections: Minister DK Shivakumar at a polling booth in Kanakapura on Saturday.(HT Photo)

If neither the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) or Congress emerge as a clear winner, the Janata Dal (Secular) may assume the role of kingmaker in the 224-member state assembly.

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Here are the highlights of the Karnataka elections:

10.15pm: Karnataka chief electoral officer Sanjeev Kumar says voting percentage is 67.4%.

9.50pm: Not only now, but I had been telling since the last six months that we will form the government in Karnataka with clear majority, says Siddaramaiah according to ANI.

9.27pm: Siddaramaiah tells NDTV that the question of seeking support from HD Deve Gowda-led JD(S) “doesn’t arise” after exit polls show hung house.

9.09pm: Karnataka chief electoral officer Sanjeev Kumar refuted Congress’ Brijesh Kalappa’s tweet that all votes went to BJP despite pressing any button at a polling booth in RMV II Stage in Bengaluru, reports ANI. “Something was tweeted, but that problem was never there. It was an EVM malfunction. Claim factually wrong,” Kumar said.

8.57pm: Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said, “We will form the government in Karnataka. The language used by the Prime Minister in the state does not suit the stature of the head of the state and during the entire campaign, he has misquoted history.”

8.55pm: Re-polling to take place in Hebbal assembly constituency’s polling station number 2 on May 14 after polling was stopped there due to EVM failure, said Sanjeev Kumar, Karnataka chief electoral officer.

8.45pm: BJP candidate G Lallesh Reddy complained of electoral malpractices. “I’m BJP candidate from BTM constituency. When I was visiting booths today, I was surprised to see people with lot of ID cards. They were ticking, calling people and giving them IDs asking them to vote. Later the IDs were again given back there,” ANI quoted Reddy as saying.

“I entered there and questioned them. A man was making a video of it when his mobile was snatched away. Several Congress people threatened to kill us. I told the officers concerned. They have assured action, but nothing has happened yet. We will inform EC,” Reddy added.

8.29 pm: Commenting on the India Today-Axis My India exit poll result that gave Congress the edge, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah told India Today that he “was expecting” the result. He said the results were “nearer to the truth” and the exit poll showed the “ground reality”.

8.20pm: Total seizure of cash is 94 crore, liquor worth 24.78 crore, various inducements like sarees, vehicles, dhotis, utensils, electronic gadgets worth 66 crores. This is more than 8 times the seizures made in the last assembly election: news agency ANI quotes Election Commission.

8.00pm: Union minister Shripad Naik denies BJP president Amit Shah in an election rally made a commitment to divert water from Mhadei river to Karnataka and resolve the dispute within six months.

7.30pm: Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath accused the Congress of misusing power in Karnataka and exuded confidence that the BJP would form government in the southern state with a clear majority. “Congress misused its power in Karnataka. Their ministers were found distributing money openly and they also used other ways to get votes,” he said.

7.00pm: India TV predicts 97 seats for Congress, 87 for BJP, 35 for JD(S) and 3 for others.

6.52pm: NDTV survey predicts 72-78 seats for Congress, 102-110 for BJP, 35-39 for JD(S) and 3-5 for others.

6.50 pm: ABP and C-Voter survey predicts 87-99 seats for Congress, 97-109 for BJP, 21-30 for JD(S) and 1-8 for others.

Exit Polls BJP Congress JD(S) Others
Republic TV

95-114

73-82 32-43 02-03
India Today 79-92 106-118 22-30 --
Times Now-VMR

80-93

90-103 31-39 --
News X-CNX

102-110

72-78 35-39 03-04
ABP-C Voter 97-109 87-99 21-30 1-8

6.45pm: Republic TV predicts 73-82 seats for Congress, 95-114 for BJP, 32-43 for JD(S) and 2-3 for others.

6.42pm: News X-CNS exit poll predicts 72-78 seats for Congress, 102-110 for BJP, 35-39 for JD(S) and 3-4 for others.

6.40pm: India Today-Axis exit poll predicts 106-118 seats for Congress, 79-92 for BJP and 22-30 seats for JD(S).

6.38pm: Times Now-VMR exit poll predicts 90-103 seats for Congress, 80-93 for BJP and 31-39 for JD(S).

6.20pm: Times Now-VMR, India Today-Karvy and ABP-CSDS are prominent news organisations which carried out exit polls projecting seats for parties in the 224-seat assembly.

6.00pm: Polling for Karnataka assembly elections ends.

5.49pm: 64.35% voter turnout recorded till 5 pm, according to Election Commission website.

5.41pm: Re-polling to take place in Hebbal assembly constituency’s polling booth number 2 after polling was stopped due to EVM failure, reports ANI.

5.34pm: In Badami, polling booth numbers 142, 143 and 144 in Tipu Nagar witness less turnout of voters. Locals say turnout is low as many residents are out of the district due to lack of employment here, reports ANI. Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah is contesting against BJP’s Sriramulu from Badami constituency.

5.12pm: A bride-to-be turned heads at a polling booth when she arrived all decked up in traditional attire to exercise her franchise. So did a disabled man in a wheelchair.

4.36pm: Congress leader Brijesh Kalappa claimed that an EVM at a polling booth in Bengaluru was registering votes only for BJP’s ‘Lotus’ symbol irrespective of which button was pressed.

4.26pm: Rain lashes parts of Hubli affecting voting.

Voters take shelter at polling station number 185 in Hubli due to rains. (ANI/Twitter)
Voters take shelter at polling station number 185 in Hubli due to rains. (ANI/Twitter)

4.23pm: Union minister Ananth Kumar Hegde urges voters to vote. “It is a great chance in democracy to cast your vote and it is a responsibility and duty which democracy gives us. It is the chance given by our elders to find the leader who can lead us,” he said in Sirsi, reports ANI.

4.21pm: BJP workers stage protest in Dharwad constituency, alleging that polling staff at a booth were asking people to vote for Congress candidate Vinay Kulkarni, reports ANI. The incident took place outside booth number 58 in Karadigudda village.

4.20pm: A Muslim woman was stopped from entering the polling booth in Karnataka’s Belagavi after she refused to remove the veil of her ‘burkha’ for identification, reports ANI.

4.17pm: 111-year-old seer Shivakumar Mahaswamiji of the Siddaganga Math at Tumakuru casts his vote, reports PTI. The seniormost pontiff of the powerful and politically influential Lingayats has reportedly never given a miss to voting since Independence.

3.57pm: Majority of the 3,500 residents of Chittapur taluk’s Tarkaspet village in Kalaburagi district are boycotting elections over their demand for gram panchayat headquarters for their village, reports ANI.

Villagers of Tarkaspet stage a sit-in demanding gram panchayat headquarters in their village. (ANI/Twitter)
Villagers of Tarkaspet stage a sit-in demanding gram panchayat headquarters in their village. (ANI/Twitter)

3.40pm: 43-degree Celsius temperature in Kalaburagi affects voter turnout, reports ANI. Locals say there was a rush at the booths in the morning, but by afternoon, there is hardly any crowd at the booths as the temperature is quite high.

3.37pm: Congress leader Ashok Gehlot accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of trying to “influence” voters in Karnataka on the polling day through his temple visits in Nepal, reports PTI.

3.25pm: Voter turnout recorded till 3pm is 53%.

3.03pm: “This Amit Shah is like a comedy show and Narendra Modi’s image has drastically declined, his speeches are completely hollow and have made no impact on the voters of Karnataka. Therefore we are not worried,” ANI quotes chief minister Siddaramaiah saying.

2.58pm: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Nepal was decided soon after KP Sharma Oli’s election as prime minister, foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale said, amid speculation over its timing which coincides with the Karnataka assembly election.

2.48pm: A bridegroom arrives at a polling booth in Dharwad to cast their vote.

2.47pm: Former foreign minister and BJP leader SM Krishna casts his vote at a polling booth in Bengaluru.

2.05pm: A person who came for voting died in Belthangady in Dakshina Kannada district.

1.45pm: 37% voting turnout has been recorded till 1pm, reports ANI. Dakshina Kannada district records highest percentage at 48, with Bengaluru recording the lowest turnout so far at 29%.

1.38pm: Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah says the JD(S) has distributed a lot of money in Chamundeshwari constituency, their candidate says he is a society secretary, so from where did he get so much money? Also, the BJP is openly supporting JD(S), they have put up a dummy candidate here.

1.35pm: We appeal to people to exercise their voting rights and choose a government of clean image. We are hopeful that public will take a huge decision today to change the politics of nation, will reject national parties BJP and Congress, and instead vote for JD(S)-BSP alliance, says Danish Ali of the JD(S).

1.08pm: Former Karnataka Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde casts his vote at a polling booth in Bengaluru. “Over the years, I feel that malpractices have increased. Distribution of sarees. alcohol, dhotis and cookers have come out in open. It is not a good sign in democracy,” says Hegde.

1.03pm: Ravi Channannavar, Bengaluru deputy commissioner of police (DCP), says it is a sensitive polling booth and the clash between BJP and Congress workers happened within 100 meters of the booth. We will investigate and take further action, the DCP told ANI.

1.01pm: Clashes break out between Congress and BJP workers outside a polling booth in Bengaluru’s Hampi Nagar, allegedly after the former thrashed a BJP corporator. Ravindra, BJP candidate from Vijayanagar constituency, tells ANI: “Our corporator Anand was attacked but police isn’t taking any action.”

12.56pm: A woman was stopped from entering a polling both in Belagavi as she was reluctant to remove her ‘burqa’ for identification. She was later allowed when a woman official identified her inside a cubicle, reports ANI.

12.32pm: Congress leader and chief minister Siddaramaiah calls BJP chief ministerial candidate BS Yeddyurappa mentally disturbed. His comment came after Yeddyurappa said he was confident of victory and set May 17 as the swearing-in date for his government. “The Congress will get more than 120 seats. I am very confident,” says Siddaramaiah.

12.23pm: BJP’s B Sriramalu casts his vote in Bellary. He is contesting from two constituencies — Molakalmuru, a Congress bastion, and Badami, where he is pitted against current chief minister Siddaramaiah. He worshipped a cow and then visited temples before voting, reports ANI.

11.57am: ANI quotes Congress general secretary Ashok Gehlot saying: “As there is a model code of conduct in Karnataka, PM Modi planned to pray at temples in Nepal instead, just to influence voters. This is not a good trend for democracy. Why did he only choose today as the day?”

11.52am: While senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge casts his vote in Basavanagar, Shivakumara Swami of Siddaganga Matha votes in Tumakuru.

11.50am: Dr Yatheendra, Congress candidate from Varuna constituency, says he has been visiting villages for the last one and a half years. Election campaigning didn’t feel any different. Wherever I went, people expressed confidence in the Congress government, says the son of chief minister Siddaramaiah.

11.30am:JD(S)’s HD Kumaraswamy and his wife cast their votes in Ramanagara. “We are confident that JD(S) will cross the magic number on its own,” Kumaraswamy says.

11.22am:BJP Karnataka chief ministerial candidate BS Yeddyurappa on Saturday expressed confidence that his party will form the new government on May 17.

11.17am: 21.2% voter turnout has been recorded till 11am. Belagavi district records highest turnout till 11 am at 26.2%.

11.15am: Chief minister Siddaramaiah in a tweet says: “Today people of Karnataka are standing in queues to create history & show the nation the way to liberal, progressive, peaceful & compassionate politics & governance. I thank them for their support & wish them well.”

11.10am: Sri Sri Ravishankar casts his vote at a polling booth in Kanakapura.

11.08am: Congress leader Brijesh Kalappa alleges EVM tampering in a Bengaluru booth.

10.15am: During the initial hour of voting, there were reports of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) malfunctioning in some booths; power crisis in a polling station in Rajajinagar seat; voters names missing at few booths and women clad in burqa made to reveal their faces at a Belagavi polling booth -- that led to a few hiccups.

10.05am: Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge says the Congress is confident. “BJP will not win more than 60-70 seats maximum, forget getting 150. They are just dreaming of forming the government,” says Kharge.

9.59am: Former cricketer Anil Kumble and his family show inked fingers after casting their votes in Bengaluru.

9.45am: Moorusavir Math’s Gurusidda Rajayogindra Mahaswami cast his vote in Hubli, Mysuru’s erstwhile royal Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar votes in Mysuru. Karnataka minister KJ George, who is contesting from Sarvagnanagar constituency, casts his vote in Bengaluru.

9.30am: 10.6% voter turnout has been recorded till 9am, reports ANI.

9.13am: JD(S)’s HD Deve Gowda casts his vote at polling booth number 244 in Holenarasipura town in Hassan district, says, “We expect a possibility of forming the government, we have done well.”

8.50am: JDS’s HD Kumaraswamy meets Nirmalanandanatha Mahaswami of Sri Adichunchanagiri Mahasamsthana Math in Jayanagar.

BJP MP Rajeev Chandrasekhar casts his vote at Karnataka Reddyjana Sangha in Bengaluru’s Koramangala.

8.30am: BJP’s B Sriramalu performed ‘gau pooja’ (cow worship) before casting his vote. He is contesting against chief minister Siddaramaiah from Badami constituency.

The Congress has moved the Election Commission to disqualify Sriramalu, considered to be close to the controversial Reddy brothers, citing sting videos allegedly showing him and G Janardhana Reddy negotiating a bribe to a relative of a former chief justice of India to influence a verdict in a mining case.

8.15am: Police have deployed 82,157 personnel for election duty that include DSPs, home guards and civil defence and forest guards and watchers, Karnataka DGP Neelamani N Raju has said.

8.01am: A faulty Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machine is being replaced at booth number 108 in Hubli. Voting is yet to resume at the booth, ANI reports.

7.42am: Chief minister Siddaramaiah urges people going to cast their votes to “remember the remarkable progress Karnataka has made in 5 years”.

7.08am: BJP chief ministerial candidate BS Yeddyurappa and Union minister and BJP leader Sadananda Gowda cast their vote in Shimoga and Puttur, respectively.

7.01am: Voting begins in 222 assembly segments in Karnataka.

6.58am: BJP’s Sadananda Gowda says there will be an increase in voting this time. They (the people) want to remove the Siddaramaiah government from Karnataka, he says.

6.50am: Yeddyurappa says people are fed up with the Siddaramaiah government. “I assure the people of Karnataka that I’m going to give good governance,” ANI quotes the BJP chief minister candidate saying.

6.48am: BJP chief minister candidate BS Yeddyurappa performs puja at his residence ahead of voting, appeals everyone should come out and vote. “We (BJP) will get more than 150 seats and I’m going to make the government on May 17,” he says.

6.47am: Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a tweet urges voters to come out in large numbers to vote. “Urging my sisters and brothers of Karnataka to vote in large numbers today. I would particularly like to call upon young voters to vote and enrich this festival of democracy with their participation,” tweets the PM.

6.45am: Preparations in Karnataka begin ahead of assembly polls, voting to start at 7am.

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