Searing heat slowing down voter turnout in Karnataka

BANGALORE: After an initial burst, voter turnout in the Karnataka Assembly polls lost momentum in the afternoon apparently due to the searing heat, with an estimated 25-30 per cent voters exercising their franchise till 1 PM.

Polling had begun on a strong note at 7 AM, with turnout being 15 to 20 per cent in the first three hours.

Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar and 106-year-old seer of the Tumkur-based famed Siddaganga Mutt, Shivakumar Swamy, were among the early voters.

Senior BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu, Union Ministers M Mallikarjuna Kharge and M Veerappa Moily, Leader of Opposition Siddaramaiah, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President G Parameshwara, BJP State unit President Prahlad Joshi, and Karnataka Janatha Paksha supremo B S Yeddyurappa were among those who voted in the initial hours.

Barring a tiff between a voter and an on-duty policeman in a Bellary booth with the former sustaining minor injuries leading to protests by a section of electorate there, polling was largely peaceful, sources said.

At a couple of places, including in Mahadevapura segment in the city, polling was delayed by a few minutes following malfunctioning of electronic voting machines.