Bengaluru, June 1: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Saturday said he has no faith in exit polls and predicted that the Congress will cross double digits in the state in the Lok Sabha elections, but refrained from giving any figures.

The party leaders, including Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar, who is also the state Congress President had been claiming that the party will win 15-20 out of 28 seats in the state.

"I have said that I have no faith in the exit polls. Today also, I'm saying the same thing. Someone called me just now saying that they (channels) are showing that we will get only two or three or four seats in Karnataka. We will get more than double digit, wait and see," Shivakumar told reporters here.

He said, "I have no faith in exit polls and their assessment, as they don't go interior. They would have done it based on some sample size, I don't believe in it. The INDIA bloc is ready to take over the mantles."

ALSO READ: Exit Polls predict clean sweep for BJP led NDA

Early exit polls predicted a comfortable majority for the BJP-led NDA, with the ruling alliance projected to open its account in Tamil Nadu and Kerala and sweep Karnataka.

The then ruling Congress-JD(S) alliance had come a cropper, winning just one seat each in 2019 Lok Sabha poll, while the BJP had swept, by winning 25 out of 28 seats in Karnataka, and had ensured the win of a party supported independent candidate in Mandya.

The JD(S) this time is in alliance with BJP, which has given the regional party three seats -- Hassan, Mandya and Kolar.

The counting of votes will take place on June 4.

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Bengaluru (PTI): Two men were arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting two minor girls, recording the acts on mobile phones and uploading the videos online as child sexual abuse material, police said on Thursday. 

The accused have been identified as Kiran Kumar (29), hailing from Chitradurga district, and Aditya M K (20), hailing from Shivamogga district, they said. 

A probe was initiated after information was received from the NCRP portal regarding a suspected instance of creation of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) for online dissemination, police said. 

Accordingly, a case was registered at Kaggalipura Police Station under relevant sections of the IT Act on May 10, they added.

Investigation revealed that two minor girl victims were exploited and videos were created and uploaded to the internet. The child victims have subsequently recorded their statements as per procedure and further necessary legal steps have been taken, Pronab Mohanty Director General of Police, Cyber Command, said in a statement.

Based on the statements of the victims, the accused persons, who allegedly assaulted the minors, recorded the acts on mobile phones and uploaded the videos online, were arrested, he said.

Following the probe, sections 65(2) (rape) and 70 (gangrape) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with relevant sections of the POCSO Act, have been added to the FIR, police said.

Officials collected relevant information and on May 12, arrested the accused persons and seized three mobile phones belonging to them, in which the videos had allegedly been recorded, he said.

The accused were later produced before the court and taken into police custody for further investigation, he added.

According to him, in CSAM cases, police usually apprehend offenders who have downloaded such content or have kept them in their possession after obtaining them from elsewhere, usually the internet. 

"The present case is one of the very few instances where content creators and uploaders have been apprehended," Mohanty added.