Karnataka votes: Bigwigs' fate to be sealed today

BATTLE FOR BALLOT: 89 Assembly constituencies - including 28 from Bangalore - go to polls in the first phase.

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Keywords: Phase 1, Karnataka

New Delhi: Election fever in the country kicks off with Karnataka going to polls on Saturday morning.

Voting began early and voters were seeing queuing up outside the various polling booths in the 89 Assembly constituencies - including 28 from Bangalore - that go to polls in the first phase.

Tumkur, Chikkaballapur, Kolar, Bangalore Urban, Bangalore Rural, Ramanagara, Mandya, Hassan, Kodagu, Mysore and Chamarajanagar are among the key constituencies where voting will take place on Saturday.

The bigwigs and the key contests

Heavyweights in the fray for this phase include former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy of the JD(S) - seeking reelection from Ramanagara - Congress Campaign Committee Chairman and former deputy chief minister S Siddaramaiah - contesting from newly carved Varuna segment in Mysore District.

Other prominent contestants include Union Minister and MP from Mandya, M H Ambareesh (who is contesting from Srirangapatna), Kumaraswamy's brother H D Revanna (Holenarasipura) and JD(S) state unit president B Somashekar (Malavalli).

Speaker Krishna (JD(S)-K R Pet), state Youth Congress president Krishna Byregowda (Byatarayanapura), former minister H C Srikantaiah (Congress-Shravanabelagola), A Krishnappa (Congress-K R Puram), Katta Subramanya Naidu (BJP-Hebbal) are some of the other noted candidates in the fray.

Former minister and CWC member G Parameshwara is contesting from Koratagere reserved constituency, after shifting from Madhugiri, which has now become general seat.

Former minister C Chennigappa of JD(S) has shifted to Doddaballapur from Koratagere, while Gowrishankar is making his debut from Madhugiri.

Both Kumaraswamy and Revanna, sons of former prime minister and JD(S) leader H D Deve Gowda, are facing women candidates.

Mamatha Nichani, eldest daughter of former Karnataka chief minister Ramakrishna Hegde, is taking on Kumaraswamy while S G Anupama, daughter-in-law of late Congress Lok Sabha member G Puttaswamy Gowda, is fighting Revanna.

Siddaramaiah's main opponent is BJP's L Revanasiddaiah, a retired director general of police.

State turns fortress

Elaborate security arrangements have been made for across the 18,500 polling stations.

NEXT PAGE: CONFUSED VOTERS, NUMBER CRUNCHING