Karnataka election: Rahul slams Modi over BJP leader bribery sting; updates

With just one more day to go for the Karnataka Assembly election, the voter ID card row continues while the Congress corners BJP over an alleged bribery sting. Catch all Karnataka polls updates here

With voting just a day away, the BJP and Congress' high-voltage campaign for the Karnataka Assembly election 2018 has ended. The campaigning in the run-up to the crucial polls saw everything from a cross-fire of barbs to a voter ID row. On the last day, Congress President Rahul Gandhi slammed the Modi government for issues ranging from atrocities against Dalits to the country's foreign policy as he expressed confidence in winning the Karnataka polls "hands down". BJP President Amit Shah, meanwhile, accused the Congress of making desperate attempts to win the election in an "undemocratic" way, adding that such machinations would not work and that his party would win 130-plus seats. On Saturday, voters in the state will decide who got it right.

The Congress' candidate from Bengaluru's Raja Rajeshwari Nagar Assembly segment has been booked in connection with the recovery of close to 10,000 voter ID cards from a flat there, along with over 100,000 counterfoils resembling acknowledgement slips used for addition of names into electoral rolls. Further, the Election Commission (EC) on Thursday night deferred a decision on the recovery of voter ID cards from the Raja Rajeshwari Nagar flat, even as it sought fresh information from the state election machinery.

Of course, the end of the official election campaign at 5 pm on Thursday did not mean that the allegations and accusations also stopped. Rahul Gandhi on Thursday attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi over allegations that BJP leader B Sriramulu had bribed former Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishnan. The accusation is based on a "sting" video showing the state BJP leader allegedly trying to bribe a kin of the former Chief Justice of India to get a favourable verdict for mining baron G Janardhana Reddy in an illegal mining case. State electoral authorities on Thursday directed TV news channels not to air the video.

The election in 223 of the 224 constituencies in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly will be held on May 12, and the counting of votes and announcement of the result will take place on May 15. The election for one constituency has been postponed following the death of B N Vijay Kumar, the Jayanagar BJP candidate.

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Karnataka election: Rahul Gandhi says Congress wining 'hands down'; updates

With Karnataka Assembly election 2018 now on their heads, the BJP and Congress have just one more day to convince and woo voters. Catch all the updates around the Karnataka election here

With the Karnataka Assembly election 2018 just two days away, the BJP and Congress' high-voltage campaigning will come to an end on Thursday at 5 pm. Prime Minister Narendra Modi today interacted with BJP Karnataka's SC/ST/OBC and slum morcha workers, slamming the Congress for disrespecting B R Ambedkar while trying to burnish his own government's record regarding welfare of SC/STs and OBCs. Congress President Rahul Gandhi said that he was confident of his party's victory in the Karnataka election.

For the BJP, party president Amit Shah and the party's chief ministerial candidate B S Yeddyurappa will be campaigning in the state today, while Congress chief Gandhi and incumbent Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will campaign for their party on the final day.

Apart from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress chief Gandhi, the Karnataka election campaign has also seen political heavyweights Sonia Gandhi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath campaign for their respective parties.

The last day of campaigning for the Karnataka polls comes after Prime Minister Modi and Congress chief Gandhi were face-to-face in the state on the second last day for the campaigning. Working seriously on his 'Congress Mukt Bharat' mission, Modi used all of his oratory skills to lambast the Congress in his four election rallies on Wednesday. On the other hand, Gandhi said in his Basavanagudi rally that the people of Karnataka would reject Prime Minister Modi and the BJP. The Congress president also attacked the Prime Minister for being silent on the issue of alleged Dalit atrocities.

The election in Karnataka will be held on May 12 in 223 constituencies, out of the 224 constituencies of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly, while the counting of votes and announcement of result will take place on May 15. The election for one constituency has been postponed following the death of B N Vijay Kumar, the Jayanagar BJP candidate.

Here are the top ten developments regarding the May 12 Karnataka Assembly election 2018:

Karnataka polls: Modi gets fact on Army wrong; Yogi rally today; updates

Days before the Karnataka Assembly election 2018, Prime Minister Modi and Congress chief Rahul Gandhi are repeatedly crossing swords. Catch the Karnataka election campaign updates here

Karnataka Assembly election 2018 has seen vigorous campaigning by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress President Rahul Gandhi crossing swords over a plethora of issues, including corruption. While Modi said the Karnataka government was a "gold medalist" in corruption and that Congress leaders were "drunk on power", Gandhi hit right back accusing the BJP of corruption in Rafale fighter jet deal and protecting fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi. The prime minister will on Friday interact with the office-bearers and workers of the BJP's Karnataka women's wing through the NaMo App.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was also in the poll-bound state, where he took a swipe at the Siddaramaiah government, accusing it of carrying out divisive and corrupt politics. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah hit back on Twitter, flaying Adityanath for being in his state for electioneering when 64 people had lost their lives due to a dust storm in Uttar Pradesh.

Further, after the BJP complained to the Election Commission (EC) over what it alleged was the Congress' attempt at playing the "communal card" in the poll-bound state to woo Muslim voters, the Congress on Thursday complained to the EC against the BJP's Karnataka unit for "getting published false and misleading advertisements" in newspapers to malign the public image of Rahul Gandhi and Siddaramaiah.

Voting in the Karnataka Assembly polls will be held on May 12, 2018, in all 224 constituencies of the state Legislative Assembly. The counting of votes and announcement of results will take place on May 15, 2018.

Here are the top developments in the BJP and Congress' Karnataka Assembly election 2018 campaign:

1) Modi holding interaction with BJP's Karnataka women's wing today: Prime Minister Modi on Friday will interact with the office-bearers and workers of the BJP's Karnataka women's wing through the NaMo App. Modi will talk about the initiatives taken by his government for woman empowerment. During the interaction, Modi will also answer questions of the workers of the party's women wing. "Narendra Modi will directly interact with the office bearers and karyakartas of Karnataka's BJP Mahila Morcha through Namo App via video bridge, at 9 am," the BJP said in a statement. Read More

Karnataka Assembly election 2018: Why it is important for BJP and Congress

Keeping all these political issues and twists and turns in Karnataka State, The entire nation and Karnataka state is eagerly waiting for the election and who will win.

This April-May will evidence the Karnataka Legislative Assembly elections in 224 constituencies to elect their respective members. Karnataka Assembly tenure ends in May 2018. The upcoming election is scheduled for April-May 2018.

The Lotus Strategy: Criticizing Invites Death

The official campaign of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) began on November 2, 2017. They launched Nava Karnataka Nirmana Parivarthana rally, which was for 75 days across the entire state lead by the state president, Y.S Yeddyurappa. The rally was completed on February 8, 2018, covering all the constituents in Karnataka covering all the constituencies and ended with a note addressed by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Prime Minister in his speech said that the entire world is busy with ease of doing business, while the Congress is busy with ease of doing murders.” “Anyone who criticizes the government will pay with death.”

Mr. Modi also stated that he wants to free Karnataka from the dynasty rule of the inefficient Congress. This would also mean putting an end to corruption and dirty politics.

A fourteen-day “Protect Bengaluru” was conducted by BJP party. According to this party, they were reviving and rebuilding the city from the gross negligence of the Congress party. The BJP and Janatadal parties were campaigning against the Congress pointing out the flaws and shortcomings under Siddaramaiah. This act has compelled Congress to emphasize on the achievements made to counter both the parties. The BJP has given enough indications that this time the election campaign will be Modi-centric and less of B.S.Yeddurappa. BJP prefers to seek votes in the name of Mr. Modi by having him as the face of the elections. The chief minister seems to be shrewd in engaging the Prime Minister.

The Congress Way: Being More Aggressive

The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) took up an act of setting up a booth level committee at 54,261 locations. They will spread the information on the various programs undertaken by the ruling Indian National Congress. This was an extensive outreach program, which was held just before the elections. The ruling congress has taken aggressive steps to reach to grass root level to halt the impression created by BJP. This micro-level reach by the Congress had created a positive impact on the people. Congress was on losing end for the past few elections.

Twists & Turns In The End

When an opinion poll was gathered, a sample revealed that Kumaraswami from Janata dal was their first choice, followed by Yeddyurappa (BJP) and then Siddaramaiah (Indian National Congress). Keeping all these political issues and twists and turns in Karnataka State, The entire nation and Karnataka state is eagerly waiting for the election and who will win in Karnataka Assembly Elections 2018.