Karnataka bypolls: Over 76 pc voter turnout recorded in three Assembly seats

Bengaluru: The by-elections held for three Assembly constituencies in Karnataka on Wednesday recorded a remarkable turnout of 76.9 per cent, according to the Election Commission's data.

The poll panel reported a voter turnout of 76.9 per cent between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. as the bypolls are being held for the 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 record voter turnout of 84.26 per cent, the Shiggaon segment witnessed 75.07 per cent of voting and the Sandur seat saw a voter turnout of 71.47 per cent.

Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel, HD Kumaraswamy’s son Nikhil Kumaraswamy is the NDA candidate contesting on the JD-S symbol from the Channapatna seat. He is also the grandson of former Prime Minister H.D. 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.

Chief Minister 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 from senior leaders.

There are 2.36 lakh voters in the Sandur constituency, out of which 1.18 lakh are women, and 29 belong to the third gender category. There are 153 polling stations.

A total of 2.32 lakh voters reside in the Channapatna seat including 1.20 lakh women and eight third gender voters.

The Vokkaliga and Muslim voters are in large numbers in this constituency. There are 208 polling booths in the constituency.

A total of 2.37 lakh voters are there in Shiggaon including 1.16 lakh women while six are third gender voters. The voting is being held at 196 polling stations across the constituency.