Karnataka Assembly polls: Over 11,000 critical booths, 1.56 lakh police personnel to be deployed

Mangalore Today News Network

Bengaluru, May 09, 2023: As many as 1.56 lakh police personnel will be deployed across Karnataka for the Assembly polls on Wednesday (May 10), said Director General of Police (DGP) Praveen Sood Monday.

 

In a statement, Sood said 304 deputy superintendents of police (DySP), 991 inspectors, 2,601 sub-inspectors, 5,803 assistant sub-inspectors, 46,421 head constables/police constables, and 8,500 homes guards and police personnel from neighbouring states would be mobilised. In addition, 650 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) and state armed police would be deployed.

According to the state police, out of the 58,282 polling booths across the 224 Assembly seats, 11,617 are identified as critical, needing additional deployment of forces.

Sood said, “There are 2,930 police sector mobiles in operation. Each sector mobile consists of a PSI/ASI rank officer and men. This mobile will be on continuous patrol and monitor around 20 booths assigned to them. There are 749 supervisory mobiles which will be supervising the sector mobiles. An inspector rank officer heads each supervisory mobile, and each supervisory mobile will manage around four sector mobiles under them. There are 236 sub-divisional mobiles headed by a DySP rank officer, generally managing one assembly constituency. More than 700 flying squads will be on the move checking for any election malpractices. More than 700 checkposts guard all sensitive locations, including interstate and inter-district borders.”

Sood said 714 externment cases were executed, and the offenders were sent out of their district to far-off places to maintain peace and harmony. 68 Goonda Act Cases were initiated against habitual offenders, he added.

650 CAPF units (Central Reserve Police Force -101, Border Security Force – 108, Central Industrial Security Force – 75, Indo-Tibetan Border Police – 70, Sashastra Seema Bal – 75, Railway Protection Force – 35, Special Armed Police – 186) are deployed. All these units have been allotted to various constituencies based on law and order sensitivity. Extra units are sent to politically and expenditure sensitive constituencies. CAPF is being used for area domination through route marches in vulnerable areas.

The counting of the votes is slated for May 13.

Courtesy: Indian Express