Karnataka: 14 LS seats to go to the polls on Friday

All arrangements are made for the 1st phase of Lok Sabha elections in 14 southern constituencies of Karnataka on Friday. Polling will begin at 7am till 6pm. It is the scorching heat wave which prevents voters coming out of their homes. Temperature is ranging from 36 to 40 degrees may hinder the voting to some extent. In all 14 constituencies public campaign ended peacefully on wednesday and on Thursday the candidates went home to home campaign.
Congress is contesting all 14 segments BJP is fielded 11 nominees and its NDA ally JDS is contesting in remaining 3 constituencies. Mainly P M Modi is the only star campaigner this time because he is the spotlight for this election.Amit Shah also frequented but not much. This election is much a Referendum on Modi governance with a slogan once again Modi. Although there are local issues involved in this election, but this being fought mainly on national issues. For Congress Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi campaigned.
About 2 crore 90 lakh people are eligible for voting on 26/4/24. There are over 30,000 polling stations set up for the purpose. There are equal  number of male and female voters. For peaceful and fair elections 1 lakh 40 thousand personnel are drafted for duty. 247 candidates are in the fray. Ex chief minister HD  Kumaraswamy, central minister Shobha Karandlaje are important among the candidates.Over 1 crore individuals are eligible to vote in Bengaluru. To motivate them to utilize their privilege, numerous hotels, pubs, and taxi aggregators have declared discounts, freebies, and complimentary rides.

(Dr Mysi Patil, State Correspondent)