The Hindu : Front Page : State borders to be sealed a day before elections: Srinivasan

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Tuesday, Apr 15, 2008
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State borders to be sealed a day before elections: Srinivasan

Staff Correspondent

Excise checkposts are to be strengthened, Central forces to be deployed

Borders to be sealed to check ‘influx of voters’
Central forces to be deployed to join KSRP, police

POLL-PREPAREDNESS: Director-General and Inspector-General of Police K.R. Srinivasan (right) at a press conference in Mangalore on Monday. Inspector-General of Police (Western Range) Ashit Mohan Prasad is also seen.

MANGALORE: State borders will be sealed a day before the Assembly elections to prevent “unusual movement” of people in vehicles, the Director-General and Inspector-General of Police K.R. Srinivasan has said.

In all, 18 districts in Karnataka share their borders with other States and they would be sealed based on the phase in which they go to the elections. The State will see elections in three phases on May 10, 16 and 22, respectively.

Addressing presspersons after reviewing the poll preparedness of the department’s Western Range here on Monday, Mr. Srinivasan said this exercise was to prevent “influx of voters” from across the borders to areas which go to polls. Movement of vehicles, including buses, would not be affected by the exercise, he said, and added that police presence at all border checkposts would be strengthened.

In addition, excise checkposts would be strengthened at the borders, he said. Police will work in tandem with the Excise Department to check inflow of liquor from across the borders. Superintendents of Police and Inspector-Generals of Police, who have jurisdiction over districts which share common border with neighbouring States, will get in touch with their respective counterparts in neighbouring States and take steps to prevent movement of liquor, he said.

Deployment of forces

On deployment of Central forces for the elections, Mr. Srinivasan said it was left to the Election Commission to decide.

These forces, which could be drawn from the Central Reserve Police Force, Central Industrial Security Force, Border Security Force and Railway Protection Force, would be used to augment the Karnataka State Reserve Police and local police for poll duties. “Their exact numbers will be known to us soon,” he said.

The holding of polls in three phases will also enable redeployment of forces sanctioned to the State, he said. Forces could be moved from phase I areas to phase II and phase III areas, he said, and added that the State police headquarters was taking stock of the availability of police personnel and their requirements. The services of Home Guards also would be availed in all districts, he said.

About security arrangements in hyper-sensitive booths and naxal-affected areas, he said striking parties — consisting of an officer, one head constable and nine police constables — would be posted to the area. The Anti-Naxal Force would be pressed into areas which had naxalite presence, he said.

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