Bengaluru: Even as speculations continue over the announcement of Assembly polls schedule, the Election Commission of India (ECI) is likely to hold the polls in the State in the second week of May in a single phase, it is reliably learnt.

Karnataka is the only State in South India that is going to the polls in a couple of months and the ECI plans to take the help of Police and other security forces of neighbouring States to maintain Law and Order during the polls and also ensure smooth and fair elections.

The ECI already has a tentative schedule in its hands, according to which the polls is going to be held for all the 224 Assembly segments  in a single phase either on May 10 or 13 and the counting of votes is likely to  be  taken up  on May 16 and the results announced the same day.

As preparations for the polls, the ECI is said to have held several round of discussions with top Police officials and bureaucrats, during which the officials were directed to complete important exams such as SSLC and PUC before the official announcement of the poll schedule, which is likely to happen either in the last week of March or first week of April.

The Karnataka Assembly has 224 constituencies and a party has to get 113 seats to gain majority for ruling the State for the next five years. The last Assembly polls was held in May 2018, when no party reached the magic number of 113 seats and subsequently a JD(S)-Congress Coalition Government                            was formed.