Bengaluru: A very high voter turnout was recorded in the by-elections held to three assembly seats on Thursday. The overall poll percentage available with the Election Commission at 7 pm was over 77 per cent.
Chief electoral officer, Anil Kumar Jha told Deccan Chronicle that the final figure was sure to go up. The polling was peaceful barring minor clashes between political party workers.
Chikkodi-Sadalaga recorded the highest of 86 per cent followed by Shikaripur—75 per cent and Bellary— 72 per cent. Compared to the 2013 assembly elections, the voter turn out was higher, local election officers said. The by-elections were necessitated following the resignation of Prakash Hukkeri, B.S. Yeddyurappa and B. Sriramulu from the Legislative assembly who got elected to the Lok Sabha in the 2014 polls.
Mr Yeddyurappa’s son B.Y. Raghavendra is fighting the Congress’ Shantaveerapa Gowda in Shikaripur while in Bellary(ST), Mr Sriramulu’s aide Mr Obalesh is fighting Congress candidate N.Y. Gopalkrishna. In Chikkodi Sadalga, Mr Prakash Hukkeri’s son Ganesh Hukkeri is the Congress candidate while the BJP has put up MLC, Mahantesh Kavatgimath.
In Shikaripur, voters from Malagondanakoppa boycotted the polling.
However, deputy commissioner, Vipul Bansal intervened and pacified the villagers after which they participated in the polling. The villagers demanded that a polling booth be set up in their village. They claimed that it was a long pending demand.
The deputy commissioner explained why he could not set up a new polling booth in the middle of voting. Following the assurance given by Mr Bansal, people withdrew their boycot threat and participated in the polling.
In Chikkodi-Sadalaga two officials on polling duty were suspended. It happened when the Congress candidate entered the polling booth in Chikkodi and the police constable and polling officer saluted him. On receiving a complaint from the opposition party, the two were suspended, the deputy commissioner said.
Meanwhile, On the day of polling for the by-election to Bellary (ST) assembly constituency on Thursday, two Congress party workers lodged a complaint with Cowl Bazar police station against BJP Lok Sabha MP B. Sriramulu, former MLA and KMF president Mr Gali Somashekhar Reddy and BJP leader Mr Shankarappa for threatening them.
Congress workers from ward 29 in Cowl Bazar area, Mr Hemiraj Reddy alias Raju and Chinnappa alleged in the complaint that Sriramulu and Somashekhar Reddy abused them and threatened them for working for the Congress candidates.
Sources said, Raju and Chinnappa were BJP workers and had joined the Congress ahead of the by-poll. The complainants stated that the BJP leaders insulted them by making derogatory comments on their caste. Police registered a complaint and an investigation is on.
