In a unique sign of protest, Leader of Opposition Siddaramaiah and other Congress leaders wore flowers on their ears during the budget presentation in the Karnataka Assembly on Friday.

The gesture was a mark of protest, alleging that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government has cheated people by not fulfilling promises from the previous budget and the promises made in the 2018 manifesto.

Meanwhile, CM Basavaraj Bommai announced that “Ram Mandir construction will be taken up in Ramanagara”. The announcement is aimed at wooing the Hindu community ahead of the elections scheduled to be held by May this year.

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The Karnataka Assembly has 224 seats with 113 seats needed for a majority in the state. The tenure of the current Assembly concludes on May 24, 2023.

In the last Assembly elections held in the state in May 2018, a coalition of Janata Dal (Secular) and Indian National Congress formed the government, with H. D. Kumaraswamy becoming Chief Minister of Karnataka.

The coalition government, in July 2019, collapsed due to resignations by several members of the Congress party and JD(S) in the Karnataka Assembly. BS Yediyurappa of the BJP became the Chief Minister next.

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Yediyurappa resigned as Chief Minister on July 26, 2021 and on July 28, 2021, Basavaraj Bommai was sworn in as the new Chief Minister.

The BJP, Congress, and JD(S) are the major political parties in the state. On December 19, 2022, JD(S) released the first list of 93 candidates.

As far as campaigning is concerned, Bommai and Yediyurappa started the “Jana Sankalpa Yatra” for the BJP on October 11, 2022, coinciding with the Bharat Jodo Yatra of Rahul Gandhi in the state. The Yatra was set to cover 52 assembly constituencies.