Assembly election: police looking out for movement of explosives

DGP orders checks on licensed stores and vehicles, especially two-wheelers

The police have launched an intense search across the State to curb the illicit movement of explosives.

After reviewing the security arrangements at the police headquarters here on Saturday, Director-General of Police J.K. Tripathy issued an elaborate plan in the run-up to the April 6 polling for the Assembly election and the counting of votes.

The focus will be more on roads leading to inter-State borders and coastal zones along the eastern seaboard. Armed guards had been deployed at checkpoints, and multi-departmental officials were conducting surprise checks, police sources said on Saturday.

Acting on intelligence inputs, senior police officials devised the strategy for managing the election campaign in the backdrop of perception of increasing threats to the VVIPs and congregation of people amid the COVID-19 safety measures, the sources said.

In a note to all Commissioners/Superintendents of Police, Mr. Tripathy ordered vehicle checks to intercept the movement of explosives, especially on two-wheelers after it emerged that they were being used with false registration numbers. The police were asked to conduct an expenditure audit at licensed explosive shops to detect any illicit or suspicious transaction in the recent past.

Mr. Tripathy said members of communal or caste organisations were likely to occupy lodges or marriage halls in large numbers under the pretext of doing election work. The situation could allow fundamentalists or miscreants to plan anti-social activities. Surprise checks should be conducted to prevent this such congregations. Since violence broke out during the filing of nominations in the past, the DGP ordered an assessment of places where problems might occur and preventive measures in coordination with the Revenue Department and other law-enforcement agencies.

The advisory asked senior police officers to ensure adherence to the COVID-19 protocol, including thermal scanning, sanitation of polling booths and maintenance of social distancing, at public gatherings or rallies and also during canvassing, filing of nominations, polling and counting of votes.