<p>After an initial burst, voter turnout in the Karnataka Assembly polls lost momentum in the afternoon apparently due to the searing heat, with an estimated 25-30 per cent voters exercising their franchise till 1 PM.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Polling had begun on a strong note at 7 AM, with turnout being 15 to 20 per cent in the first three hours.<br /><br />Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar and 106-year-old seer of the Tumkur-based famed Siddaganga Mutt, Shivakumar Swamy, were among the early voters.<br /><br />Senior BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu, Union Ministers M Mallikarjuna Kharge and M Veerappa Moily, Leader of Opposition Siddaramaiah, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President G Parameshwara, BJP State unit President Prahlad Joshi, and Karnataka Janatha Paksha supremo B S Yeddyurappa were among those who voted in the initial hours.<br /><br />Barring a tiff between a voter and an on-duty policeman in a Bellary booth with the former sustaining minor injuries leading to protests by a section of electorate there, polling was largely peaceful, sources said.<br /><br />At a couple of places, including in Mahadevapura segment in the city, polling was delayed by a few minutes following malfunctioning of electronic voting machines.<br />"I am very happy with the arrangements made by the Election Commission, the way in which they have enlightened the people about the need for voting and I am hoping for a better voting in the election, improved voter percentage", Naidu, a Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka, told reporters.<br /><br />Authorities have made elaborate security arrangements for peaceful and smooth conduct of polls.<br /><br />Polling is being held in 223 segments, with the one in Periyapatna in Mysore district having been postponed to May 28 following the death of BJP candidate.<br /><br />Over 2.5 lakh people are on poll duty. Police personnel deployed on the ground are more than 1.35 lakh, with authorities keep a special vigil in hypersensitive booths with the help of cameras. There are a total of 2940 candidates in the fray.<br /><br />Election Commission and several NGOs had conducted vigorous campaigns in recent weeks to encourage people to vote. In the 2008 elections, voter turn-out in the State was 64.91 per cent. The highest voting percentage in Karnataka history was in 1978, when it recorded 71.9.<br /><br />Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer Anil Kumar Jha said recently the endeavour is to take it to 75 per cent.<br /><br /></p>
<p>After an initial burst, voter turnout in the Karnataka Assembly polls lost momentum in the afternoon apparently due to the searing heat, with an estimated 25-30 per cent voters exercising their franchise till 1 PM.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Polling had begun on a strong note at 7 AM, with turnout being 15 to 20 per cent in the first three hours.<br /><br />Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar and 106-year-old seer of the Tumkur-based famed Siddaganga Mutt, Shivakumar Swamy, were among the early voters.<br /><br />Senior BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu, Union Ministers M Mallikarjuna Kharge and M Veerappa Moily, Leader of Opposition Siddaramaiah, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President G Parameshwara, BJP State unit President Prahlad Joshi, and Karnataka Janatha Paksha supremo B S Yeddyurappa were among those who voted in the initial hours.<br /><br />Barring a tiff between a voter and an on-duty policeman in a Bellary booth with the former sustaining minor injuries leading to protests by a section of electorate there, polling was largely peaceful, sources said.<br /><br />At a couple of places, including in Mahadevapura segment in the city, polling was delayed by a few minutes following malfunctioning of electronic voting machines.<br />"I am very happy with the arrangements made by the Election Commission, the way in which they have enlightened the people about the need for voting and I am hoping for a better voting in the election, improved voter percentage", Naidu, a Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka, told reporters.<br /><br />Authorities have made elaborate security arrangements for peaceful and smooth conduct of polls.<br /><br />Polling is being held in 223 segments, with the one in Periyapatna in Mysore district having been postponed to May 28 following the death of BJP candidate.<br /><br />Over 2.5 lakh people are on poll duty. Police personnel deployed on the ground are more than 1.35 lakh, with authorities keep a special vigil in hypersensitive booths with the help of cameras. There are a total of 2940 candidates in the fray.<br /><br />Election Commission and several NGOs had conducted vigorous campaigns in recent weeks to encourage people to vote. In the 2008 elections, voter turn-out in the State was 64.91 per cent. The highest voting percentage in Karnataka history was in 1978, when it recorded 71.9.<br /><br />Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer Anil Kumar Jha said recently the endeavour is to take it to 75 per cent.<br /><br /></p>