Thaindian News

Koppal (Karnataka), Sep 26 (IANS) Around 60 percent of the over 185,000 eligible voters cast their ballots Monday in the bypoll for the Karnataka assembly from this north Karnataka town.

“Around 60 percent voting took place. Except for protests at some places by people who did not find their name in the electoral list even though they had voter identity cards, the balloting was peaceful,” a spokesperson of the state election commission told IANS.

Counting of votes is on Sep 29.

The contest is mainly among the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s Karadi Sanganna, Congress’ Basavaraj Hitnal and Janata Dal-Secular’s Pradeep Patil. There are 11 Independents also in the fray.

The bypoll was caused by Sanganna, who was elected on JD-S ticket in the 2008 polls, quitting the assembly and his party to join BJP in March this year.

Koppal is about 300 km from Bangalore.

The bypoll outcome would not affect the second BJP government headed by D.V. Sadananda Gowda as the ruling party has 118 members and the support of one Independent in the 225-member house that includes one nominated member.

However, the outcome would have a bearing on the internal politics of the state BJP.

The ruling party went to the bypoll with former chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa loyalists using it to project him as the ‘undisputed’ leader, though he was forced out of office July 31 for alleged graft in the illegal mining scam.

The dispute was settled by the party central leaders who directed the state unit to “fight the bypoll under collective leadership”.

For the Congress, winning the seat would be a morale booster as it has fared poorly in all elections since it lost power in 2004.

Victory of JD-S would give the struggling party of former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda hope that it remains a force in state politics in spite of graft cases against his son and former chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and his legislator wife Anita.