7.60pc turnout till 9am in Karnataka
Bengaluru: A voter turnout of 7.60 per cent is being reported from 14 constituencies in Karnataka till 9 am, with the highest number of people voting in Dakshina Kannada and the least in Bangalore Central during the first two hours.
Dakshina Kannada recorded a voting per cent of 14.94 per cent and Bangalore Central 5.41 per cent till 9 am, election officials said.
Many senior senior citizens cast their vote during the morning hours to avoid the summer heat.
Union minister D V Sadananda Gowda, the BJP candidate from Bangalore North, was among the early voters.
State Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, wife Anita and son Nikhil, the JD(S) candidate from Mandya, cast their vote at Kethiganahalli which comes under Bangalore Rural seat.
Speaking to reporters later, Kumaraswamy urged people to exercise their right to franchise. "Voting is your right, please go to polling booths and vote. Your vote will decide the next government of the country," he said.
The Congress-JD(S) alliance is fighting against the BJP in Karnataka.
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitaraman and RSS joint general secretary Dattatreya Hosabale, Congress candidate in Bangalore (North) Krishna Byre Gowda also cast their vote.
Infosys founder N R Narayana Murthy and wife Sudha cast their vote in Bengaluru.
Polling began at 7 am in 30,164 polling stations that are mostly in the southern part of the state, covering almost the entire old Mysuru region and a few coastal districts.
A total of 2,67,51,893 people are expected to vote to elect their representative from among 241 candidates in the fray during this phase.
Among the 241 candidates, 224 are men and 17 women. Thirty-one candidates, the highest, are contesting from Bangalore (North) and the least from Hassan (6).
Prominent contestants in this phase are former prime minister H D Deve Gowda (Tumkur), his grandsons Prajwal Revanna and Nikhil Kumaraswamy from Hassan and Mandya respectively, as also Union minister Sadananda Gowda (Bangalore North), and senior Congress leaders Veerappa Moily (Chikkaballapura) and K H Muniyappa (Kolar).
Other candidates include multi-lingual actors and independent candidates Sumalatha Ambareesh (Mandya) and Prakash Raj (Bangalore North), and BJP's Tejasvi Surya (Bangalore South), who is pitted against veteran Congressman B K Hariprasad.
Of the 14 constituencies going to polls, BJP and Congress had won six each in 2014 Lok Sabha elections, and JD(S) in two.
While the BJP is contesting in 13 constituencies and supporting independent candidate Sumalatha Ambareesh in Mandya, Congress and JD(S) have fielded their candidates in 10 and four constituencies, respectively.
The remaining 14 constituencies, mostly in the northern districts, will go to polls on April 23.
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West Asia conflict: Six Indians lost their lives in 'various incidents', says MEA
New Delhi (PTI): Amid the escalating West Asia conflict, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Friday said six Indian nationals have lost their lives while one remains missing in "various incidents".
At an inter-ministerial briefing here, Additional Secretary (Gulf), MEA, Aseem R Mahajan, also said, "Late yesterday night, we received information regarding the tragic demise of an Indian national, during an attack in Riyadh on March 18." He, however, did not elaborate upon the circumstances of this death.
"We express our deepest condolences to the family of the deceased. Our Mission in Riyadh is in touch with the family and closely co-ordinating with local authorities for the early return of the mortal remains to India," he said.
On Friday, the Indian Embassy in Riyadh also said that an Indian national was killed in Saudi Arabia due to the “recent events of March 18”.
In a social media post, the Indian Mission expressed its “deepest condolences on the tragic demise of an Indian national in Riyadh due to recent events on March 18".
A day earlier, the Indian embassy said alerts were received by residents in Riyadh and some other regions on Wednesday. “The Indian community is advised to remain calm and composed,” the embassy said.
Mahajan also told reporters in Delhi that "six Indian nationals have lost their lives and one is missing in various incidents".
"Our missions in Saudi Arabia, Oman, Iraq, and the UAE are in regular touch with the concerned authorities regarding the missing Indian national and for the early repatriation of mortal remains of the deceased Indian nationals to India," he said.
Less than a week ago, the MEA official had told reporters in an inter-ministerial briefing on the West Asia situation that five Indian nationals had lost their lives while one is missing in various incidents.
The West Asia conflict began on February 28 when the US-Israel combine launched military strikes on Iran. In retaliation, Tehran has targeted Gulf countries hosting US military bases.
Energy and other civilian infrastructure in the Gulf region have also come under attack during this conflict that has stretched into three weeks, with no end to it in sight.
Since February 28, around three lakh passengers have returned from the region to India, Mahajan said.
