By-elections to Bagalkot and Davanagere South assembly constituencies concluded on Thursday with both seats recording a turnout of over 68%, amid scattered tensions, technical disturbances and allegations of temptation during the day.
According to figures released by the Election Commission of India (ECI), turnout stood at 68.74% in Bagalkot and 68.43% in Davanagere South when polls closed. The voting process began at seven in the morning and continued until six in the evening.
The day started slowly, with participation exceeding only 20% after the first four hours. Voting accelerated in the early afternoon: by 1pm, turnout was 37.17% in Davanagere South and 43.75% in Bagalkot. By 3pm, Davanagere South’s percentage reached 49.66%, while Bagalkot’s percentage remained at 43.75% before rising later in the day.
In Bagalkot, participation was marked by the return of migrant workers from Goa. About 70 to 80 voters from Madhapur village traveled throughout the night in special buses to cast their votes. “Now, we have come to cast our votes,” one of them told reporters, recalling the help they received from a local leader during the coronavirus lockdown.
In an otherwise orderly poll, tensions came to the fore at a polling station near Millat School in Davangere South, where Congress and Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) workers argued over table placement. Congress workers cited a violation of the rules and accused SDPI agents of placing the table about 200 meters from the booth. The dispute escalated after the tables were turned, leading to a short clash. The police intervened and restored order. No injuries were reported.
Technical disruptions were also reported in Davanagere South, where malfunctions in VVPAT units and electronic voting machines delayed polling at two stations earlier in the day.
In Bagalkot, voters at a polling station in Aminagadh complained of inadequate basic amenities, including lack of drinking water and shade, forcing people to wait in queues under sweltering temperatures. An elderly woman collapsed while waiting and was taken by local residents for treatment, according to a local official.
Allegations of inducements and intimidation add to the complexities of the day. Reports from Wambi Colony in Navanagar, which falls under Bagalkot Assembly, claimed that voters were being paraded $500. In a video circulating online, the authenticity of which could not be independently verified, a woman showed a sign $500 notes and allegedly given to her by Congress staffers expressing their dissatisfaction with the amount.
Bagalkot police registered a First Information Report (FIR) after the video surfaced. “The matter was immediately investigated and an FIR has been registered. Further investigation is underway,” the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer said.
In a separate incident, residents surrounded a car belonging to a Congress leader in Bagalkot and accused those inside of distributing money. The leader reportedly came out and confronted the crowd.
Other allegations surfaced in Bagalkot relating to allegations that students in educational institutions were threatened with consequences if they did not vote for a particular party. The district election official ordered an investigation into the matter. Youth Congress and student leaders staged a protest and submitted a memorandum alleging coercion and irregularities in the issuance of voter ID cards.
In another complaint, student representatives alleged that hostel inmates were prevented from voting. The district authorities denied the charge, saying that only one student was eligible to vote, and he was allowed to vote.
A total of 34 candidates are contesting in both the constituencies, with the main contest being between the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party. SDPI is also competing.
Bagalkot, which has 295,000 voters, saw nine candidates in the fray across 332 polling stations, with more than 1,500 personnel deployed. The South Davangere district, which has 231,000 voters, had 25 candidates and 284 polling stations, including 76 classified as sensitive, with more than 1,000 security personnel deployed. Prohibition orders were implemented within a 200-metre radius of polling stations.
The by-election was necessitated by the deaths of incumbent Congress legislators in both constituencies. While the result does not change the balance of power in the Assembly, both major parties have launched large-scale campaigns.
For the Congress party, retaining the two seats would strengthen its standing among voters, while the loss may be interpreted as a setback for the state government’s performance. The BJP, for its part, is seeking to seize seats to signal voter discontent and energize its cadres ahead of the 2028 Assembly elections.
