Staff Reporter
ITANAGAR, 1 Apr: In a bid to prevent possible poll-related violence, the state’s chief electoral officer (CEO) has bound down 2,864 people across the state, especially those who have previous records of having been involved in poll-related violence.
“They have been bound down under Sections 107, 108, and 109, read with 116 CrPC,” informed CEO Dr Pawan Kumar Sain during a media briefing here on Monday evening.
He informed that preventive measures are being taken to tackle law and order issues and thwart possible poll-related violence during the elections, adding that “these people were identified as having been involved in violence in previous elections.”
He further informed that “action under Section 151 has been taken in 230 cases related to both pre-and post-model code of conduct (MCC) violation, and 137 non-bailable warrants have been issued so far.”
The CEO disclosed that 936 illegal arms have been seized so far and 24,999 arms have been deposited at police stations across the state.
“Whoever hasn’t deposited their arms, their names and addresses are with me. Strict action will be initiated as per the Election Commission guidelines against the violators, including cancellation of arms licence,” the CEO said.
“In the pre-MCC period, a total of Rs 5,18,66,974 was seized, in which cash amount was Rs 1,7,500,750 and liquor value is Rs 1.87 crore, and after the MCC, Rs 3,03,40,000 was seized, adding up to a total of Rs 1,1,5,153,287,” the CEO said.
He further stated that, “compared to previous election seizures, this time it is larger and greater, which means that enforcement and monitoring presence are effective round the clock.”
He informed also that “37 points have been identified for interstate border entry and exit points and strict checking is going on.
“Route maps have been identified on liquor, drugs and cash, which have been shared with the election commissioner,” he said.
The CEO directed the tax & excise commissioner to “declare dry day on the voting day on 19 April.”
Sain informed also that, in order to maintain law and order and ensure free and fair elections, “55 companies have been deployed across the state, and the state police nodal officer Chukhu Apa has been directed to coordinate with the neighbouring states to prevent any kind of violence.”
The deputy commissioners of Lohit, West Siang and East Kameng districts held a coordination meeting with their Assam counterparts to ensure that boundary-related issues should not erupt during the election period.
