Chandigarh, May 3
Responding to the
apprehension of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) about a large-scale "vandalisation and criminalisation" of the May 10 Lok
Sabha poll, the Election Commission has directed the Punjab police to deploy the
Border Security Force on active duty in Patiala and Ferozepore.
An additional
company of the BSF is also being made available to Faridkot for sealing the
border with Haryana.
Besides ordering active deployment of paramilitary forces
in sensitive and hypersensitive parliamentary constituencies of Patiala,
Ferozepore and Faridkot, the commission is also reported to have not taken
kindly to the proceeding on leave of both Home Secretary S.K. Sinha and
Inspector-General of Patiala Zone Rajinder Singh. The commission wants that they
should be shifted.
Sources in the Election Commission reveal that, in addition
to 50 companies of paramilitary forces already made available to Punjab, 10 more
companies of the BSF will be sent to the state on May 6 for deployment in
Patiala, Ferozepore and other places.
While the Election Commission is keen
that "polling should be free, fair and without any fear", any apprehension of
"rigging, booth capturing, use of muscle power or unfair means" must be taken
seriously by taking immediate preventive steps.
Yesterday, the Chief Electoral
Officer, Mr G.S. Cheema, had written to the Punjab police that there were
apprehensions of booth capturing, violence and use of muscle power both in the
Patiala and Ferozepore parliamentary constituencies.
The arrangements were
reviewed at a meeting between Mr Cheema and Mr Shashi Kant, Additional
Director-General of Police, looking after election arrangements.
Mr Shashi Kant
said that one company each of the BSF and the DGP's Reserve are being deployed
in Patiala, while two companies of the BSF will be on duty in Ferozepore. One
company of DGP's Reserve is also being allocated to Ludhiana.
He said that the
DIGs of Patiala, Ferozepore and Faridkot have been asked to be extra vigilant.
Even the election observers have been told to be alert and tour the
constituencies to ensure that no untoward incident happened there.
Meanwhile,
the SAD has decided to approach the National Human Rights Commission, leading
human rights and civil liberties organisations and individuals, besides the
Election Commission, for their intervention in Punjab in the face of what it
described as “definite and incontrovertible evidence and reports” on the ruling
Congress plans for a large-scale action to “vandalise and criminalise” polling
on May 10.
“Democracy faces its severest state-sponsored onslaught in Punjab.
Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh is leading the assault unabashedly from the
front and, unless checked decisively and in time, he could well lead the state
back to the bloody dark days,” said Mr Parkash Singh Badal, the SAD
chief.
“Capt Amarinder Singh is leading the charge against democracy by
subordinating the state administration to the interests of the ruling party and
putting himself at the head of an army of goons to browbeat the populace. He is
doing to Punjab what some Congress leaders had done to Bihar i.e. to criminalise
polity of the state,” the SAD chief said in his communication to the Election
Commission.
Mr Badal said that the state police had been used to create a fear
psychosis and now the rowdy and goonda elements had been assured all state
patronage in order to rig the poll. The situation in the state was extremely
tense and alarming and the Chief Minister’s provocative actions could pose a
danger to the public peace and seriously endangering a free and fair poll.
“We
have definite information that the ruling party in Punjab, in active connivance
with the state government authorities, has put in place a plan to sabotage the
poll. Elaborate arrangements have been made not only to rig the poll through
various devious means but also to affect the polling pattern and percentage by
creating an atmosphere of oppression and panic. Services of lawless elements
from within and outside the state have been requisitioned by the ruling party,”
Mr Badal said.
