Bengaluru, Feb 24: Karnataka has reported 453 new cases of COVID-19 and seven related fatalities, taking the total number of infections to 9,49,636 and the death toll to 12,316, the Health department said on Thursday.

The day also saw 947 patients getting discharged after recovery.

Out of the 453 fresh cases reported on Thursday, 271 cases were from Bengaluru Urban alone.

As of February 25 evening, cumulatively 9,49,636 COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed in the state, which includes 12,316 deaths and 9,31,725 discharges, the Health department said in its bulletin.

It said, out of 5,576 active cases, 5,455 patients are in isolation at designated hospitals and are stable, while 121 are in ICU.

Out of the 7 deaths reported on Thursday, 4 are from Bengaluru Urban and one each from Kalaburagi, Mandya and Udupi.

Among the districts where the new cases were reported, Bengaluru Urban accounted for 271, followed by Mysuru (27), Tumakuru and Dakshina Kannada (24), Kalaburagi and Udupi (12), followed by others.

Bengaluru Urban district tops the list of positive cases, with a total of 4,04,628, followed by Mysuru (54,019) and Ballari (39,243).

Among discharges too, Bengaluru Urban tops the list with 3,96,274, followed by Mysuru (52,799) and Ballari (38,601).

A total of over 1,85,62,530 samples have been tested so far, out of which 68,166 were tested on Thursday alone, and 4,847 among them were rapid antigen tests.

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Kolkata (PTI): A day before the counting of votes for the West Bengal assembly elections, two persons were arrested on Sunday for allegedly being involved in a firing incident outside the residence of a BJP leader in North 24 Parganas district, police said.

BJP leader Kundan Singh lodged a police complaint, alleging that a few gunmen fired at his house in the Noapara constituency around Saturday midnight.

Based on the CCTV footage, the two accused were apprehended, a senior officer said.

BJP's Noapara candidate Arjun Singh, in a post on social media, claimed that around 12.05 am, two armed miscreants arrived on a motorcycle at the residence of Kundan Singh, a BJP functionary and secretary of the Barrackpore organisational district, with an "intent to kill him".

According to the BJP leader, the accused are residents of Garulia and are known criminals.

Their names as offenders had been submitted to the Election Commission, he said.

The police officer did not specify whether the two arrested persons were the same individuals named by Arjun Singh.

According to the complaint, one round of firing took place outside Kundan Singh's house, triggering panic in the area.

The BJP candidate also questioned the role of the police, claiming that one of the accused had been detained by the police on the polling day but was later released in the evening.

The Noapara assembly seat went to the polls on April 29.

Several BJP leaders alleged that attempts were being made to create an atmosphere of fear ahead of the counting and weaken the organisation of the opposition parties.

The counting of votes will take place on May 4. Polling for the West Bengal assembly elections was held on April 23 and April 29.

The BJP urged the Election Commission to intervene immediately to ensure peaceful counting.

TMC candidate Somnath Shyam rubbished Arjun Singh’s allegation, claiming that the BJP nominee had orchestrated the firing incident to divert attention from imminent defeat.

“Arjun Singh knows all the gangsters in the Barrackpore belt. Everyone knows about his links with the underworld. Let the police investigate the incident,” Shyam said.