Action-packed Phase II for Karnataka | Big contest

COP OUT: Security has been heightened in view of the Naxal threat in all the districts going to polls in Phase 2.

    

Phase II: Vital Statistics

The second phase of polling for the Karnataka Assembly elections begins on Friday even amid a Naxal call for a boycott of elections. On Thursday, two people were killed in Naxal violence in Udupi. The Election Commission has suspended the SP of Bellary - where polls will be held on Friday - after BJP's complaints of misconduct by the police officer.

Voting will take place for 66 seats in 10 districts of coastal and central Karnataka.

590 contestants are in the fray, and 1.1 crore voters will exercise their franchise.

The key contest is between two former CMs: S Bangarappa of Samajwadi Party and BJP's B S Yeddyurappa in Shikaripura.

There are several mine owners in fray in Bellary

In most areas, Congress and BJP are locked in a direct face off.

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Bangalore: It’s a clash of the titans as BJP's B S Yedyurappa faces former Chief Minister S Bangarappa in Shikaripura in the crucial second phase of the Karnataka polls.

Security has been heightened in the Malnad and coastal regions ahead of Friday's polling, as Naxals have called for a boycott.

But it's not just the Naxal threat causing concern. The coastal districts have seen considerable communal tension in the last two years, including an attack on a Congress candidate on Wednesday.

The districts have been BJP strongholds for more than 15 years but the communal rift could spell trouble.

“It'll go against them, people do not want a regime of communal violence. So this election, Karnataka is going to give a decisive majority for the Congress party. And give a very stern message to the BJP,” says Congress spokesperson, Veerappa Moily.

But the BJP is playing it down. “That is not an issue for the election,” says BJP MP Venkaiah Naidu

Another region going to polls is Bellary. The iron-ore-rich district has seen considerable violence since campaigning began, with mining barons getting into a game of one-upmanship.

Communal tension, Naxal threat and rivalry among mining barons - add to this the desperation between the Congress and the BJP to not just win but to pull each other down, and phase II promises to be a keen contest.

(With inputs from H R Venkatesh)