Voting underway in 14 Karnataka seats
Bengaluru: Voting is underway in 14 of the 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka, where the contest is mainly between the ruling Congress-JD(S) coalition and the BJP, in the second phase of parliamentary polls.
Prominent contestants in this phase include 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).
As the polling began, people stood patiently in queues at 30,164 polling stations, most of them in the southern part of the state, covering almost the entire old Mysuru region and a few coastal districts. Many voters arrived early to avoid the summer heat.
A total of 2,67,51,893 voters are expected to vote to elect their representative in parliament from among 241 candidates in the fray during this phase.
The rest 14 seats in the state are to go to polls in the third phase on April 23.
Among the 241 candidates, 224 are men and 17 women. While the highest number of 31 candidates are from Bangalore North, the least is in Hassan with six candidates.
Out of total 2,67,51,893 voters in the 14 constituencies, 1,35,45,818 are men, 1,32,03,258 women and 2,817 'others'.
A total of 36,196 control units, 52,112 ballot units and 37,705 VVPAT machines are being used for the polls in 14 constituencies, where a total of 2,11,405 polling personnel- including 1,54,262 poll officials, 38,597 police personnel, 7,727 transport personnel and 10,819 other personnel will be on duty.
Police have made elaborate security arrangement to avoid any untoward incident.
It is a high stakes battle for the ruling Congress-JD(S) alliance that is grappling with dissidence among grassroots-level workers over seat-sharing, as any adverse results from the region, considered as their stronghold, is likely to have its impact on the longevity of the coalition government in the state.
The BJP is determined to improve its tally compared to last time.
Other candidates in this phase 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.
Key constituencies to be watched out for include Mandya, that saw a bitter campaign, where Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy's son Nikhil from JD(S) is pitted against independent candidate Sumalatha, widow of actor-turned politician M H Ambareesh.
Lack of support from local Congress workers is worrying the regional party here.
Spotlight is also on Tumkur where JD(S) patriarch and former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda is contesting for the first time after vacating his Hassan seat to another grandson Prajwal Revanna, along with Bangalore South where in a surprise move BJP gave ticket to 28 year-old Surya, denying ticket to Union minister Ananth Kumar's widow Tejaswini, causing some resentment.
Of the 14 constituencies going to the 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 northern districts, will go to polls in the second phase 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.
