With the Allahabad High Court likely to deliver its verdit on the title suit of Ram Janmbhoomi-Babri Mosque next month, Uttar Pradesh police has chalked out a security plan and sought an additional 4,500 paramilitary personnel from the Centre.
“As per the special plan chalked out in this regard, eight ADGs and five IGs have been given additional 16 ranges in the State, besides a DG has been nominated as special observer,” officials said here on Saturday.
The DGP has asked these officers to report to their respective ranges in the first week of September, they said.
The district level officers have also been asked to identify sensitive and hyper-sensitive areas in their respective region, they said.
Leave of policemen have also been cancelled.
The government has demanded 458 companies of Central forces to pre-empt any retaliation to the verdict.
“The verdict by the special Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court is expected anytime in the second half of September and the State has to prepare for any reaction to it, therefore, it has asked the Centre for 458 companies of the central forces,” a senior government official told PTI.
As the dispute in the past has led to several incidents, it is essential that we take every necessary step to pre-empt any trouble and retaliation, he said, adding that though the demand has been made, the State is yet to receive a positive reply from Centre.
In view of the expected verdict, 19 of the total 72 districts of the State have been identified as hyper-sensitive besides, 25 others as sensitive, the official said.
The districts which have been identified as hyper sensitive include Faizabad, Lucknow, Bareilly, Muzaffarnagar, Meerut, Moradabad, Kanpur, Bulandshahr, Bahraich, Gorakhpur, Allahabad, Aligarh, Bijnore, Gonda, Mathura, Varanasi, Agra, Ghaziabad and Rampur.
The official said that in the event of denial of central forces, the State would have to make arrangements for the security on its own.
The State has 82 thousand district police force, 150 companies of the PAC , 80 thousand home guards and 20 thousand PRD jawans.
The Centre had allotted 260 companies in 1990 and 375 companies were sent in 1992 when the disputed structure was demolished.
During the Ayodhya movement in 1990, the State had identified 14 districts as hyper sensitive, while in 1992 the State had 16 hyper sensitive districts.
