Agencies
 
Bangalore, May 22: Karnataka is all set to enter the final phase of the polling that could well decide the future political course of Karnataka.

Polls began on Thursday morning in 69 constituencies in eight Karnataka districts primarily in the northern part of the state in what is the third and final phase of balloting for the 224-member strong state assembly.

An estimated 1.17 crore electorate will decide the poll fortunes of 699 aspirants, prominent among them include former Chief Minister N Dharam Singh of Congress, KPCC president M Mallikarjun Kharge, Jagadish Shettar (BJP), A B Patil and H K Patil (both Congress).

The authorities have pressed about 58,000 personnel for security in the districts of Belgaum, Bagalkot, Bijapur, Gulbarga, Bidar, Gadag, Dharwad and Haveri. Two BJP MPs - Ramesh Jigajinagi and Basanagouda Patil Yatnal -- are also in fray in this phase in which 23 women candidates are seeking to enter the assembly.

The first phase of polling was held in 89 segments on May 10 and the second phase in 66 constituencies on May 16. The counting of votes for all the 224 constituencies will be taken up on May 25.

Winning a majority of the seats in this round is herculean task as there are three major political parties in the fray. The election is critical for the Congress as well as the Bharatiya Janata Party if either has to get a clear mandate to rule the state.

The state earlier saw the fall of three coalition governments in less than four years after a split verdict in the 2004 assembly polls.

Balloting is taking place in 12,389 polling stations in the districts of Belgaum, Gulbarga, Bagalkot, Bijapur, Bidar, Gadag, Dharwad and Haveri.

Over 11.72 million voters, including 5.76 million women, are eligible to vote to decide the fate of 699 candidates, an overwhelming majority of whom are independents.

Around 56,000 security personnel are on duty to ensure smooth polling. Police have classified 4,358 polling booths as hyper-sensitive, an official jargon to indicate the possibility of violence.

Voting has taken place in two phases for 155 seats - for 89 on May 10 and 66 on May 16. Counting will take place on May 25.

Dharam Singh and Kharge will set a record if they are elected as it will be the ninth win in a row for the two. Singh is seeking re-election from Jewargi which has sent him to the assembly eight times while Kharge had to shift from his home seat Gurmitkal as it has been de-reserved and made a general constituency. He is contesting from nearby Chittapur.

The campaign for the third phase was much more vigorous than the first and second with BJP senior leader L K Advani touring the area for two days continuously and Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi spending four days.

The Congress campaign was led by party president Sonia Gandhi and general secretary Rahul Gandhi who, between them, addressed five public meetings.

Janata Dal-Secular president and former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, his son and former Karnataka chief minister H D Kumaraswamy and Bahujan Samaj Party chief and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati have also campaigned for their party candidates.

Like in the second phase, the main battle in this round is between the Congress and the BJP. The Congress dominance was ended by the BJP in the 2004 poll when it won 31 seats from the region to emerge as the single largest party in the house with 79 seats.

The Congress bagged 17 and the JD-S was a surprise victor in 13. The remaining were taken by independents.

The BJP is perceived to have further strengthened its hold on the region as there is a sizeable population of politically influential Lingayat community, a section of which is upset with the Congress for allegedly neglecting its interests.

The JD-S is also expected by political observers to take a hit in the region in the wake of its pulling down of the first BJP chief minister in the state, B.S. Yediuyurappa, in November last year just a week after he was sworn in.

Yediyurappa belongs to the Lingayat community and the BJP has projected him as its chief ministerial candidate in the present elections.

In the first phase on May 10 when balloting took place for 89 seats from 11 districts, the main contenders were the Congress and the JD-S, though the BJP is confident of doing well there too.