The results of one of the most closely-fought elections in Karnataka will be declared on Tuesday, even as outgoing Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said he was willing to step aside for a Dalit nominee of the Congress if his party were to return to power.

Siddaramaiah’s statement has virtually thrown open the race for the CM’s post with several aspirants in the Congress ranks coming forward.

The party’s State unit chief G Parameshwara, a Dalit leader, is one of the contenders. Mallikarjun Kharge, the Congress’ leader in the Lok Sabha, has said that he should be considered for the job — not on account of being a Dalit but because he is one of the party’s senior-most leaders. The other aspirant, KH Muniyappa, is a Dalit leader from Kolar district and has held Cabinet posts at the Centre.

Siddaramaiah had also said that the 2018 elections would be his last.

There has been no response from the BJP’s chief ministerial aspirant, BS Yeddyurappa, although he had, much in advance, invited chief ministers of other States ruled by the party for his swearing-in ceremony on May 17. Siddaramaiah reacted saying the BJP leader was not in control of his faculties.

Yeddyurappa’s confidence, according to political analysts, arises from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s last-minute tour of various districts. In a characteristic campaign blitzkrieg, Modi held 21 rallies in eight days, which, many believe, has boosted the BJP’s chances at the hustings.

Meanwhile, another chief ministerial aspirant, HD Kumaraswamy of the JD(S), has left for Singapore. He is expected to be away from the State on Tuesday, when results are announced.

The Karnataka polls come before several State elections in the Hindi heartland, and the Lok Sabha polls next year.

Of the several exit poll predictions, seven predict a hung Assembly, six forecast a BJP victory and two project a win for the Congress. In the 2013 elections, the Congress won 122 seats, and the BJP and the JD (S) secured 40 each.

The State witnessed 73.07 per cent polling on May 12, against 71.45 per cent in 2013.

In Badami and Chamundeshwari, two constituencies from where Siddaramaiah contested, the polling percentage stood at 74.7 and 76 per cent respectively. In Shikaripura, Yeddyurappa’s seat, there was 81.5 per cent voting. Kumaraswamy contested from Ramanagara (82.6 per cent) and Channapatna (85.9 per cent).

“If the results throw up a hung Assembly, the State will witness a a period of political and economic instability,” says Priyanca Mathur Velath, a professor at Jain University. She told BusinessLine that if the BJP is elected to power, it will be the first time in the history of the State when a party ruling at the Centre would have been voted to power in Karnataka. “But according to various ground reports, there was more of a media hype about the influence of voters by the rallies by the top leadership of the BJP.”

Counting for the elections will begin at 8 am on Tuesday with the postal ballots being taken up first for counting followed by the EVMs. Readers can access the results at www.thehindubusinessline.com and #HinduBusinessLine.

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