A team of the Election Commission of India led by Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar along with commissioners Anup Chandra Pandey and Arun Goel has arrived at Bengaluru today to review the poll preparedness for forthcoming Assembly Elections in Karnataka.
The Karnataka Legislative Assembly with a total of 224 seats is likely to go to polls by May.
The BJP is under fire in the state after its MLA Madal Virupakshappa was named as the main accused in the Karnataka Soaps and Detergents (KSDL) contract scam.
His son Prashanth Madal, who is the chief accounts officer of the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board, was arrested by the Lokayutka police on March 2 while allegedly receiving a bribe of Rs 40 lakh on behalf of his father at the KSDL office.
Virupakashappa resigned as chairperson of KSDL following his son's arrest and was granted interim bail by the Karnataka High Court on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the political tussle to woo the voters has intensified in south Karnataka with the ruling BJP focusing on the region to ensure a clear majority in the elections.
Prime Minister Modi will be inaugurating the Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway on March 12. Mysuru-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha has stated that the roadshow of Prime Minister Modi will be held after the SPG clearance. Party sources explain that the state unit wants the roadshow to impress the voters of the region.
On the other hand, Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar has said the party's screening committee has discussed ticket distribution to about 170 assembly constituencies so far, and there is unanimity of opinion.
Winnability, social justice and commitment to the party are the major criteria being considered for ticket distribution, he noted, and said efforts are on to reach out to aspirants in several constituencies to have unanimity on the candidates.
Senior Congress leader Mohan Prakash is the chair of the screening committee, which has party leaders Neeraj Dangi, Mohammed Jawed and Saptagiri Ulaka as members.
Shivakumar, CLP Leader Siddaramaiah, AICC general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala, Leader of the Opposition in Council B K Hariprasad, KPCC Campaign Committee Chief M B Patil, manifesto committee chief G Parameshwara, and AICC secretaries in charge of Karnataka are its ex-officio members.
Responding to a question, Shivakumar said winnability is important for the party and not individuals.
"Keeping this in mind, we will select the candidates, along with that social justice and commitment to the party will also be kept in mind," he said.
As Congress aims to come to power in Karnataka with an absolute majority, the KPCC chief had on Tuesday said that the recent survey has predicted a tally of over 140 seats for the party.