BJP likely to return to power in Karnataka, predicts Opinion poll

The Bharatiya Janata Party is likely to emerge as the single largest party in Karnataka with a projection of 110-120, an opinion poll conducted by the Edupress group has revealed.

As per the Opinion polls, the BJP is likely to win seats anywhere between 110-120 while the nearest rival Congress will win 70-80 seats. With 10-15 seats, the Janata Dal-Secular stands in third place while others will get 4 to 9 seats.

The Edupress group, a psephology body of south India, has conducted the survey among 18,331 respondents in 50 constituencies of the state and in 183 polling booths.

The Opinion poll predicted that the BJP may secure 43 per cent vote share in Karnataka, followed by the Congress with 37. All three leading parties are leaving no stone unturned to woo voters.

The BJP is seeking to retain the state with party heavyweights, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah, campaigning in the state, while Opposition Congress tries to corner the BJP over corruption charges.

Janata Dal (Secular), the third party which can emerge as a game-changer is closing the developmets closely. Notably, the Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao-led Bharat Rashtra Samithi has described the JD(S) as its "natural ally", and has thrown its weight behind it.

The BJP is leaving no stone unturned to woo voters, with the Basavaraj Bommai government scrapping the 4 per cent reservation for Muslims under the Other Backward Classes (OBC) quota, and distributing it equally among the dominant Vokkaliga and Lingayat communities.

While the Congress has made corruption a central theme of its campaign, pointing to various "scams" and 40 per cent commission charge by a contractors' body.

The BJP will seek to focus on various development projects and social welfare initiatives taken up by the Modi government, while the Congress and JD(S) will showcase their track record when they were in power.

The election will be held in a single-phase on May 10 while the counting of votes will take place on May 13. The tenure of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly is scheduled to end on 24 May 2023.