Section 144 has been imposed in capital city of Karnataka, Bengaluru on the eve of vote counting for the crucial assembly elections. The Bengaluru police has clamped down restrictions on counting day to avoid untoward incidents. Section 144 will be imposed in the entire district from 6 am on Saturday to 12 am on Sunday.
According to reports, there will also be a ban on liquor sale in the Bengaluru police commissionerate region. The ruling BJP is hoping to retain the only southern state where it has held power, and in the process, reverse the trend since the 1980s of Karnataka voting out its incumbent government. The Congress, on the other hand, aims to win its first major state since December 2018, when it defeated its arch-rival in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. According to most exit polls, the Congress will either be the single-largest party or win just about enough number of seats to form government on its own. In the 224-member Karnataka legislative assembly, the majority figure is 113.