Central forces to be deployed at sensitive poll booths

TRIVANDRUM: Kerala’s chief election officer, Teekaram Meena, has announced a series of measures against bogus voting, violence and impersonation, especially in the northern districts.

The southern state goes to polls on April 6 in a single phase to elect the 140-member legislative assembly along with Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.

The term of the present government headed by chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) ends on June 2.

Close to 27 million people, including a record number of 90,709 non-resident Indians (NRI), have enrolled as voters.

The overseas electors can cast their vote if they are present in their constituencies at the time of polling.

The enrolment is now open on the official website voterportal.eci.gov.in and it will close ten days before the last date for withdrawal of candidates, which is March 22.

Addressing reporters here, he said the state police would not be allowed to enter the premises of sensitive polling stations which would be manned by central forces.

The Border Security Force (BSF) has already sent the first batch of forces comprising 15 companies of 120 soldiers each for deployment in sensitive areas.

Indo-tibetan Border Police, Central Industrial Security Force and Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), the Nepal-bhutan border patrolling troops, have also sent five companies each.

“We take strong action against atempts to rig the elections. We’ll also webcast voting at all sensitive polling booths,” Meena told reporters here Saturday.

“Officials should act impartially. They need not bother about the present government or who is going to come next. We will protect them during and ater the elections.” He said atempts at bogus voting were seen in many places in the past and that would not be tolerated anymore. Webcasting will be done in 50 per cent of polling booths.

He also warned strict action against polling officials engaging in political activities or turning a blind eye at rigging.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) had last week reportedly pulled up Kasaragod district collector for not taking action against CPI (M) legislator K Kunjiraman.

The action followed a complaint by Dr KM Sreekumar, an agricultural entomologist who was working as a presiding officer during the recent civic polls, that the legislator threatened him for preventing impersonation at a polling station in his Udma constituency.