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The total voter turnout till 1 pm was recorded at 37.25% in Karnataka Assembly Elections. Karnataka Elections 2023 updates: The total voter turnout till 3 pm was recorded at 52.03% in Karnataka Assembly Elections. Infosys founder Narayana Murthy said that how can we expect others to spend 100 per cent of their time towards the progress and development of Karnataka if we don't spend 0.1 per cent to 0.2 per cent of our time and stand in the queue to vote. He was also one of the early voters today.
Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said that he is confident that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will come back to power with a comfortable majority. He also attacked the Congress over corruption and that a lot of people are out on bail. Bommai said more than 60 cases have been filed against former CM and others. Moreover, Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge said that the Congress will win with thumping majority in Karnataka.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman traded barbs at the Opposition after she cast her vote in Bengaluru. Sitharaman took over the Opposition on issues like inflation and the proposed ban on Bajrang Dal. Founder of IT bellwether Infosys Narayana Murthy and his wife philanthropist and author Sudha Murty were also among the early voters. After casting her vote, Sudha Murty said that voting is a sacred part of democracy. Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai also casted his vote at a polling booth in his constituency Shiggaon. A voter turnout of 20.99 per cent was recorded till 11 am.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has urged voters, especially youngsters and first time voters, to vote in large numbers. Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also urged Kannadigas to vote for a strong, development oriented and capable government that works tirelessly to make their lives better. 'Ponniyin Selvan' actor Prakash Raj cast his vote from Bengaluru this morning. Voting to decide the fate of 2,615 candidates is underway across the 224-seat assembly. Karnataka has a total of 5.21 crore voters including 2.58 crore women voters and 2.62 crore male voters. Of the total voters, 9.17 lakh are first-time voters whereas 16,976 are above the age of 100.
The winning side needs to secure at least 113 seats. Of the 224 seats, 36 are reserved for SCs whereas 15 are for STs. Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, Leader of Opposition Siddaramaiah, Congress state chief DK Shivakumar, and former Karnataka CM Jagadish Shettar are among the key candidates to watch out for in these polls. Karnataka is voting to elect a new government, with the incumbent BJP facing the challenge from the Congress. The Janata Dal (Secular) is third main player in the contest. Counting of votes for the single-phase polls will be conducted on May 13.
Also read: Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai '100% confident' in BJP’s victory
Here are the latest updates on Karnataka Elections 2023 from Business Today.In:
First time voters were actively seen participating in the voting process during the Karnataka Assembly elections on Wednesday. According to Election Commission (EC) officials, as many as 11.71 lakh were eligible to exercise their franchise for the first time.
Union Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Shobha Karandlaje also cast her vote at a polling booth in Bengaluru. The BJP leader urged voters to arrive at polling booths and vote in high percentage and bring a good government.
Union Minister Pralhad Joshi on Wednesday cast his vote in the Karnataka Assembly Elections at a polling booth in Hubballi and expressed confidence that BJP will form government in the state. “I’m happy that people are celebrating this festival of democracy in a big way. People are interested to bring BJP’s double-engine government. BJP will form a government on its own,” he said, according to a ANI report.
In the eight hours of voting, which began at 7 am, Ramanagara recorded the highest turnout of 63.36 per cent, while the the lowest polling was seen in Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) South limits (parts of Bengaluru city) at 40.28 per cent
Violent incidents were reported from at least 3 places, news agency PTI reported citing police sources. At Masabinal village in Vijayapura district's Basavana Bagewadi taluk, villagers destroyed electronic voting machines (EVMs), VVPAT (voter verifiable paper audit trail) machines, and damaged vehicles of polling officers on rumours the officers were changing EVMs and VVPATs. Violent incidents were also reported from Bengaluru's Padmanabhanagar constituency and Ballari district's Sanjeevarayanakote respectively.
"It's a small village. All round development has taken place. Credit should go to HD Revanna, who represents this constituency," says JD(S) chief and former Prime Minister HD Devegowda after casting his vote at his native village Haradanahalli in Hassan district.
Till 1 pm, Udupi saw the highest voter turnout at 47.79%.
Kannada actor Kiccha Sudeep after casting his vote in Bengaluru asked people to keep their issues in mind and vote accordingly. "I've not come here as a celebrity, I've come here as an Indian and it's my responsibility," he said.
Karnataka Congress DK Shivakumar on Wednesday dismissed a post-poll alliance with Janata Dal (Secular) JD (S) expressing confidence that his party will get an absolute majority in the 224-seat assembly. "We will form the government on our own," he said, as per ANI.
Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge, who cast his vote at a polling booth in Kalaburagi, feels that his party will come to power and will win with the majority.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel has said that he "hopes" BJP will learn a lesson on May 13th when the results of Karnataka elections will be out. "Whole country is watching the Karnataka Election. On the one hand, they (BJP) are distributing lots of money and on the other side, there is love of the people (for Congress). I hope that BJP will learn a lesson on 13th May," he said.
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