Transfer of votes a challenge for JDS-Congress alliance in Karnataka

The Congress and JD(S), which are fighting the Lok Sabha polls in Karnataka in an "alliance of compulsion" after having contested the state elections against each other, face a key challenge of ensuring transfer of votes between the parties that would test the mettle of the ruling coalition.

It is even more daunting in the old Mysuru region, where both parties are considered as arch rivals, having been at loggerheads for decades.

The Congress and the JD(S), which had bitterly fought each other in the May 2018 assembly polls, had sewed up a post-election alliance after a hung verdict with the BJP emerging as the single largest party but falling short of required numbers.

The Congress will contest 20 Lok Sabha seats and the JD(S) eight under a deal between the coalition partners finalised on Wednesday after weeks of haggling.

For the coalition to emerge as a formidable opposition to the BJP and win more number of seats, it is crucial for the Congress to transfer its votes to the JD(S), .