The Congress is slightly ahead of the ruling BJP in early trends as votes for the Karnataka assembly polls are being counted today. In the 224-seat Karnataka assembly, a party needs to win 113 seats to form the government. Of the total 224 seats, 36 seats are reserved for scheduled castes and 15 for scheduled tribes. The electoral fortunes of top leaders-- Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai of the BJP, Congress heavyweights Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar and JD(S)' HD Kumaraswamy, among many others will be decided today.
Counting of votes began at 8 am at 36 centres across the state.Most exit polls have given an edge to the Congress over the ruling BJP. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has expressed confidence that the ruling BJP will cross the "magic number" with a clear majority."We are confident that we will win and cross the magic number. We have got the ground report from all the booths and the constituencies".On being asked about Congress having allegedly booked resorts to keep the flock together, Mr Bommai said the grand old party will not get a majority and hence they are in touch with other parties.