Karnataka polls: Delays reported in balloting in some places

In a tweet, Congress lawmaker Priyank Kharge alleged polling was stopped at booth number 178 in Chamnur village as the presiding officer was prompting people to vote for the BJP

The polling for the 224-member Karnataka assembly began on Wednesday morning with an overall turnout of 8.26% across the state at 9:55am amid reports of delays in balloting in some places.

A polling booth in Chikmagalur. (PTI)

In a tweet, Congress lawmaker Priyank Kharge alleged polling was stopped at booth number 178 in Chamnur village as the presiding officer was prompting and influencing people to vote for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). In Chitradurga, BJP and Congress workers clashed near a polling booth.

Voting was delayed due to Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) malfunction at booth number 30 in the Yadgir constituency.

Residents of Elligye Hundi in Mysuru’s Chamundeshwari constituency threatened to boycott the election in protest against a lack of development, prompting poll officials to placate them.

Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman voted at the Bharath Education Society polling booth in Bengaluru’s Jayanagar and chief minister Basavaraj Bommai in Shiggaon

As many as 52 million voters are eligible to vote for 2,430 candidates contesting the elections. The campaigning for the polls ended on Monday with the BJP hoping to retain power in the only southern state in the face of stiff competition from a resurgent Congress. The counting of votes will be held on May 13.

The campaign ahead of the 2023 polls centered around issues of corruption, unemployment, price rise, tweak in the state’s reservation framework, etc. The Congress targeted the BJP-led government over alleged corruption.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday urged voters to “come and vote on May 10” for a “bright future” and prompted the Congress to approach the Election Commission of India over violation of the model code of conduct.

In a memorandum to the poll watchdog, Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala termed Modi’s appeal as a “brazen, deliberate and calculated violation of the model code of conduct as well as the provisions of the Representation of the People Act.”