NATIONAL

Campaigning for assembly elections picks up in Karnataka; Vote from home begins for older persons & Persons with Disabilities


Top politicians from BJP and Congress flocked to the poll-bound Karnataka to campaign to woo voters. On his first leg of a two-day tour to the state, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today, April 29 addressed the public gathering in the Humnabad area of Karnataka's Bidar district.

Addressing the people, Modi said this election is not just for winning, it is an election to make Karnataka the number One state in the country. Saying the double-engine government is essential for the state's development and making it number 1. Compared to the Congress regime, Modi said under the BJP government, foreign investment has increased thrice in the state. He said Congress had only made fake promises to the people of Karnataka, and the state's farmers have not received benefits under the Congress government.

On the recent controversy over Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge's remark against him, Mr. Modi said let Congress abuse him, but he will keep on working for the people of Karnataka, adding that the party has abused him 91 times earlier. The Prime Minister will address two more public conventions today in the Vijaypura area, and  Kudachi in Belagavi district before arriving in the state capital Bengaluru in the evening for a 4.5 kilometers road show. Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi addressed an election rally and attended a roadshow in Kundgol in Dharward.

Meanwhile, the voting process for senior citizens aged 80 and above, and people with disability having opted for home voting through the ballot, has commenced. The Election Commission sources said 2,806 are eligible, including 2,404 senior voters in the age group, and 402 physically challenged voters have opted for the facility. This is for the first time that the Election Commission has initiated the initiative to ensure that no one misses voting due to their inability to visit polling stations. Mysuru deputy commissioner and district election officer KV Rajendra said a total of 135 teams comprising seven members each visited the voters' doorsteps between 9 am and 5 pm to facilitate their voting at their registered addresses. Before the visit, messages are sent to the voters' relatives o relatives through booth-level officers.

Most Recent