NEW DELHI, May 12 (Xinhua) — India's southern state of Karnataka went to polls Saturday, seen as a prelude to the general elections due next year.

Amid tight security, the voting began at 7:00 a.m. local time and will go on till 6:00 p.m. for 222 of the 224 assembly seats in Karnataka, which is ruled by India's main opposition Congress party.

Voting was cancelled in one constituency after a candidate's death, while in another constituency it has been deferred by the country's Election Commission.

While the country's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is trying to win the state to regain their southern India's only bastion, it is a big test for Congress President Rahul Gandhi's leadership who took over the party's reins from his mother Sonia Gandhi in December last year.

The face of Congress state leadership is 69-year-old incumbent Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, while the BJP has fielded former chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa as its chief ministerial candidate.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the election campaign in the state, while Gandhi too left no stone unturned to woo the voters, both rural and urban in the state capital Bengaluru.

Winning the state is crucial for the BJP as it will be sort of an indicator of the southern India's mood ahead of the general elections next year. So far no ruling party has won state polls for the second time in a row.