68% final voter turnout registered in 14 Karnataka Lok Sabha seats

Lok Sabha 2019

Among the 14 seats, Shivamogga in Malnad region registered the highest voting percentage of 76.43%.

IANS

An estimated 68.15 % of the 2.43 crore electorate voted on Tuesday in Karnataka's remaining 14 Lok Sabha seats across the state's western and northern regions, an official said. "The overall voter turnout is 67.66 after polling ended at 6 p.m., with all those in the queue by then also casting their ballot," a poll official said. Among the 14 seats, Shivamogga in Malnad region registered the highest voting of 76.43 per cent, followed by Chikkodi with 75.42 per cent, Uttara Kannada with 74.07 per cent and Davanagere with 72.57 per cent. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s B.Y. Raghavendra is the candidate in Shimoga against Madhu Bangarappa of the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S). They are sons of former Chief Ministers B.S. Yeddyurappa of the BJP and late S. Bangarappa of the Congress, respectively. The lowest turnout was in Raichur (ST) - 57.85 per cent, followed by Gulbarga (ST) 59.59 per cent, Bijapur (SC) 60.28 per cent and Bidar 62.72 per cent. Polling percentage in other six seats were 71.35 in Haveri, 70.05 in Dharwad, 69.57 in Bagalkot, 68.43 in Koppal, 67.24 per cent in Belagavi and Ballari 66.22. Union Minister and BJP's five-time MP Anantkumar Hegde was in the fray from Uttar Kannada, while Congress leader in the 16th Lok Sabha, Mallikarjuna Kharge is contesting for a hat-trick from Gulbarga (SC) against BJP's Umesh Jadav. Voting was held in 28,022 polling stations across the regions peacefully barring stray incidents and delays due to glitches in EVMs and VVPATs initially. In all, 237 candidates, including 10 women, were in the fray, with 164 Independents. With the ruling JD-S and Congress fielding common candidates as part of their pre-poll alliance, the BJP was locked in a straight contest with them after nearly three decades. While the Congress contested in 11 seats -- Chikkodi, Belgaum, Bagalkot, Gulbarga (SC), Raichur (ST), Bidar, Koppal, Ballari (ST), Haveri, Dharwad and Davanagere seats, the JD-S contested in Vijayapura (SC), Shivamogga and Uttara Kannada. In the Ballari (ST) seat, BJP's Devandrappa faced outgoing Congress member V.S. Ugrappa who wrested the seat from the BJP in the November 2018 by-election. In Dharwad, outgoing BJP MP Prahlad Joshi contested against Vinay Kulkarni of the Congress.In Bidar, Congress state working President Eshwar Khandre faced sitting BJP member Bhagawanth Khuba.BJP's Union Minister Ramesh Jigajinagi contested against JD-S candidate Sunita Devanand.The Congress has also fielded woman candidate Veena Kasappanavar in Bagalkot against outgoing BJP MP P.C. Gaddigoudar. The BJP has not fielded any woman in this phase. Its sitting member Shobha Karandlaje re-contested from Udupi-Chikamgalur in the April 18 polling. In the 2014 elections, the BJP won 11 and the Congress 3, with JD-S none. In the April 18 polling in the central and southern region, the overall voter turnout was 69 per cent. Of the 14 seats, the BJP contested in 13 and supported Independent multi-lingual South Indian actress Sumalatha Ambareesh in the high-profile Mandya against Nikhil Gowda of the JD(S) and son of state Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and grandson of  JD(S)   supremo H.D. Deve Gowda. Of the 14 seats on April 18, the Congress contested 10 and JD-S 4, including Hassan, Tumakuru and Udupi-Chikkamagaluru. In the 2014 elections, the BJP and Congress won 6 seats each out of these and JD(S) won 2.  

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Lok Sabha Elections: Heavy rainfall affects polling in parts of Karnataka

Lok Sabha 2019

The rain showers, which began late in the afternoon, led to polling getting halted in a few polling booths in Shivamogga and Uttara Kannada districts.

TNM Staff

Rain showers affected parts of Karnataka, including areas in Uttara Kannada and Shivamogga districts, where the third phase of the Lok Sabha elections was being held. Widespread moderate rainfall along with spells of isolated heavy rains was reported in coastal and Malnad region of the state. The rain showers, which began late in the afternoon, led to polling getting halted in a few polling booths "In isolated places, there was heavy rain because thunderstorm activity is taking place all along the coastal and Malnad region. This will last for one or two hours at the most and it is expected to affect Udupi, Shivamogga, Uttara Kannada and Chikkamagaluru," explained Sunil Gavaskar, a meteorologist working with Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC). Rainfall forecast (for next 24 hours) pic.twitter.com/lgsWLBSPiT — KSNDMC (@KarnatakaSNDMC) April 23, 2019 In Shivamogga, heavy winds and rain in Talaguppa village of Sagar taluk led to an electric pole falling down near booth number 272. Voting in the booth was halted for 30 minutes. Though nobody was injured by the falling pole, residents in the area avoided the road fearing that electric current is passing through the pole. Meanwhile, rain showers affected polling in Uttara Kannada district, particularly in Ankola, Honnavara, and Sirsi. Moderate (7.5-36.55 mm) rain showers and thunderstorms were also reported in parts of Udupi and Chikkamagaluru. As per a release by the Indian Meteorological Department, rain showers are expected to continue in south interior Karnataka over the next 24 hours. At 5 pm, the voter turnout in Shivamogga and Uttara Kannada constituencies was 68.39% and 65.58% respectively. Polling ended at 6 pm, although voters who arrive at the polling booth before the stipulated time will be given the chance to vote. The voter turnouts in both districts are expected to increase but it remains to be seen whether the rains have deterred voters.  

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Bengaluru housing fraud: Homigo’s founders, investor absconding for over a month

Crime

In mid-March, residents living in Homigo’s properties on a lease or a rental basis, were suddenly asked to vacate their homes by the property owners.

Soumya Chatterjee

More than a month after Bengaluru police registered the first cheating case against real estate agency Homigo, the company’s three founders — Jatin Mitruka, Aaskash Verma and Nikunj Batheja—all alumni of IIT-Kanpur, continue to remain absconding.  Along with the three founders, one of the investors Chaitanya Cotha, part of Krishnaiah Chetty group, has also managed to evade arrest.  This despite the Central Crime Branch of Bengaluru being given the responsibility to probe the case after multiple FIRs were registered against the company at various police stations in the city. Assistant Commissioner of Police Laxmi Narayan, who is the investigating officer, refused to comment. A source confirmed that anticipatory bail for all four has been rejected by a local court.  While the first case was registered on March 7 in Mico Layout Police Station by one of the customers, many other FIRs were registered at different police stations across the city. Based on this, City Police Commissioner T Suneel Kumar had transferred the case to the Central Crime Branch police station. Homigo worked on a model where they leased properties or apartments and sub-leased it to a customer after furnishing, by charging a premium. The company had raised funding from multiple investors such as Mebelkart and Livespace. According to its website, it was operating 32 properties across the city.  TNM had earlier reported how the agency courted controversy after the founders went incommunicado and started defaulting on their payments.  Read: Asked to vacate homes overnight, B’luru tenants unite against real estate agency Homigo In mid-March, residents living in Homigo’s properties on a lease or a rental basis, were suddenly asked to vacate their homes by the property owners. This is because Homigo failed to pay the original property owners their due. In addition to losing their homes, the tenants are also at risk of losing their deposit and lease money. Security deposits up to Rs 50,000–  and for some, lease amounts to the tune of lakhs – are with Homigo. Other than those living in the properties leased by Homigo, many service providers and blue collar staff employed by Homigo have also been left unpaid for more than two months in some cases.

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Karnataka govt to celebrate Rajkumar’s birth anniversary on April 24

Anniversary

It is Rajkumar's 91st birth anniversary and like every year, a ritual will be held at the actor's memorial at the Kanteerava Studio in Bengaluru.

TNM Staff

Wikimedia Commons/

Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy on Tuesday announced that the state government will celebrate the birth anniversary of late actor Rajkumar. In a tweet, Kumaraswamy spoke about the late actor's birthday and revealed that the state government plans to celebrate across the state. "Dr. Rajkumar is the cultural ambassador of Kannada Nadu. Not only on the screen, but also in real life, his generosity, intuition, and life values are exemplary. Tomorrow is his birthday. The state government is celebrating Rajanna's birthday all over the state. Take part everyone. Happy Birthday Dr. Rajkumar" ಡಾ. ರಾಜ್ ಕುಮಾರ್ ಕನ್ನಡ ನಾಡಿನ ಸಾಂಸ್ಕೃತಿಕ ರಾಯಭಾರಿ. ತೆರೆಯ ಮೇಲಷ್ಟೇ ಅಲ್ಲ, ನಿಜ ಜೀವನದಲ್ಲಿಯೂ ಅವರ ಔದಾರ್ಯ, ಅಂತಃಕರಣ, ಜೀವನ ಮೌಲ್ಯಗಳು ಅನುಕರಣೀಯ. ನಾಳೆ ಅವರ ಹುಟ್ಟುಹಬ್ಬ. ರಾಜ್ಯ ಸರ್ಕಾರ ರಾಜ್ಯದೆಲ್ಲೆಡೆ ರಾಜಣ್ಣ ಅವರ ಹುಟ್ಟು ಹಬ್ಬ ಆಚರಿಸುತ್ತಿದೆ. ಎಲ್ಲರೂ ಭಾಗವಹಿಸಿ. ಡಾ ರಾಜ್ ಹುಟ್ಟುಹಬ್ಬದ ಶುಭಾಶಯಗಳು#Rajkumar pic.twitter.com/FhnCvkpReB — H D Kumaraswamy (@hd_kumaraswamy) April 23, 2019 This is the legendary actor's 91st birth anniversary and like every year, a ritual will be held at the actor's memorial at the Kanteerava Studio in Bengaluru. This year, there were doubts about whether the celebration will be held on a large-scale due to the birthday coming just a day after the Lok Sabha elections in 14 constituencies in the state. However, allaying fears of a low-key celebration, CM HD Kumaraswamy confirmed that plans were in place to hold celebrations across the state. Born in 1929 as Singanalluru Puttaswamayya Muthuraju, he was renamed Rajkumar for his on-screen avatar. In a film career spanning several decades, he acted in over 200 films and is still remembered as the most celebrated actor of the Kannada film industry. He has been conferred various titles, that of Nata Saarvabhouma (emperor of actors), Bangarada Manushya (man of gold), Vara Nata (gifted actor) and Rajanna (elder brother, Raj). He is also a recipient of the Padma Bhushan in 1983 and the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1995 for lifetime contribution to Indian cinema. He is survived by his three sons Shiva, Raghavendra and Puneeth, who are all actors in the Kannada film industry, and daughters Lakshmi and Poornima.  

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Have a solution for Bengaluru’s terrible traffic? Cops seek advice from residents

Civic Issues

The police now want to revive the defunct traffic advisory committees to rope in residents in managing area-related traffic issues.

TNM Staff

Representation Photo

Bengaluru residents always have one thing to complain about – traffic. While most casual conversations among city residents circle around traffic jams and the horrendous Electronic City flyover, it's also not new for Bengalureans to lament about a lack of proper traffic management. The Bengaluru City Traffic Police is now asking residents to help assess the city's miserable traffic situation and come up with solutions. For over 25 years, the traffic advisory committee in Bengaluru has been active only on paper. The Bengaluru Traffic Police are now planning to introduce traffic advisory committees across 44 traffic police stations in the city and residents will be included in these committee. These residents will also be engaged in enforcement of traffic rules and regulations. Bengaluru is consistently found to have among the lower traffic speeds among major urban cities in India. To help address traffic-related issues, the traffic advisory committee will consist of permanent residents, who will be able to offer solutions to concerns in their area. Although these committees were supposed to be established over two decades ago, the police have finally decided to make them a reality.  Bengaluru Traffic Police Commissioner P Harishekaran said, “From an auto driver to a cab driver to software engineer to an activist. Whoever has the ability to identify traffic-related problems and offer suggestions to solve these issues will be part of this committee. These committees will also work with officials. One journalist from each locality will be a part of the committee.” Police officials say that public grievance meetings -- currently being held on the third Saturday of every month -- barely have any footfall. “If more people become aware of these meetings, with more participation, we will be able to pick members of the committee by narrowing down on regulars. Whatever problems are brought to the committee’s notice will be passed on to necessary authorities like the BBMP, BWSSB etc,” the police official added. An effective move? But traffic management expert MN Sreehari believes that the proposal is just an eyewash to make residents believe that traffic management is an inclusive space where their issues are heard. Speaking to TNM, he said, “This committee has no powers. BBMP builds roads, BDA plans various layouts. BWSSB dig up roads at it own will. However, the traffic police permission is required for carrying out road works. This permission is given by the Traffic Commissioner. What is the point of these committees? It is an eyewash. People will come and lament and no action will be taken. What were they doing for 25 years?” However, Ashish Verma, a professor at IISc, says that the effectiveness of the traffic advisory committees, although limited, can only be determined once they become operational. Verma argues that these committees can help identify area-specific traffic congestion problems, which can be brought to the notice of concerned authorities.

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