With the three-phase poll schedule commencing from May 10 and culminating on May 22 announced by the Election Commission of India on Wednesday, Karnataka acquired the status of first state to go for polls under the newly delimitated constituencies.
The Chief Election Commission of India N Gopalaswami flanked by Election Commissioners S Y Quraishi and Navin Chawla pronounced while briefing the press in New Delhi on Wednesday said the first and second phase elections will be held on May 10 for 89 constituencies, May 16 for 66 constituencies respectively and finally the third phase will decide the future of candidates on May 22 for the rest 69 seats. Counting of votes will be done and completed three days later on May 25 with the announcement of the results for the 224-member in the Karnataka assembly.
The Model Code of Conduct comes into immediate effect and applies to all candidates, political parties, the State as well as the Central Governments as Karnataka is passing through Central rule.
Under the newly delimitated constituencies thirty-six seats are reserved for the Scheduled Castes and 15 for the Scheduled Tribes. As per the poll accounts a total of 4,00,77,666 electors are entitled to use their constitutional rights of which 2,03,99,338 are men and 1,96,78,328 are women. Electronic voting machines (EVMs) will be used at all polling booths, numbering 39,758 for the voting purpose.
The nomination process for the 89 assembly constituencies in 11 districts for the first phase of polling on May 10 will commence on April 16. The weeklong nominations will be filed from April 22 for the second phase covering 10 districts and the final phase of voting will be held in 8 districts for which the nomination process starts from April 26.
Karnataka under President Rule
The Chief EC Gopalaswami said the election would have to be held within six months of the date of dissolution of assembly as per the direction of Supreme Court judgment regarding premature dissolution of the legislative assembly.
President rule in Karnataka has been effective in the state from November 20 last year, which comes to an end on May 28 with the constitution of the 13th Assembly. The assembly was dissolver on November 28 after keeping it under suspended animation for a week.
Though the election process would be completed before May 28, but the President’s rule would have to be extended beyond May 20 for a week or more until the new government was formed.
In the last Assembly Election that held in 2004 in Karnataka, BJP was the major political party leading with 79 seats, whereas Congress with 65 and Janta Dal (S) with 58 seats dominated the polls.
Test for BJP and Congress
BJP will be under pressure to continue its winning streak in state elections and will try not only to regain its constituencies but also to spread its tentacles to other seats.
For the Congress it will be a testing time as it cannot blame BJP or JD(S) for the high cost of essential commodities pulses, vegetables, fruits etc since the state is passing through central rule. BJP will try its best to encircle Congress on the issue of price rise.
However, the appeal of Congress pro-rural push which reflects in the form of farmer’s lone waiver in its union budget will be a key element of its campaign to wooing voters as the state has a large agricultural population.
Besides BJP and Congress, the assembly polls will be an acid test for the JD (S) leader and former prime minister H D Deve Gowda whether he again holds the state’s rule in his or his son Kumaraswami’s hand or sandwiched between the two national parties.
|
|
Read More: Delhi
Comments:
