The state police directorate has proposed deploying 263 out of the 277 companies of Central Armed Paramilitary Forces (CAPF) stationed currently in Bengal to guard all 5,814 polling stations and four strong rooms and manage the quick response team (QRT) for the first phase of the general election on April 19.
Additionally, the police directorate proposed that the state force be utilised to manage other aspects of the security design in the three constituencies that would go to the polls on April 19.
The state nodal officer for the police, in a letter to chief electoral officer (CEO) Aariz Aftab, has also recommended deploying the remaining 14 companies to the districts and commissionerates slated for the second phase of elections. This deployment plan suggests assigning one CAPF company per district and commissionerate to conduct area domination and confidence-building exercises, particularly in sensitive areas.
“We have received the plan for the deployment of forces from the state police department and we have sent it to the election commission, the special general observer and the special police observer for their approval,” an official at the CEO office said. “There is a possibility of getting additional forces and once it is approved then this plan will change,” the official added.
Sources in the commission also said that the full bench of the Election Commission has called for a virtual meeting on April 12 to finalise the security plan for the first phase where CEO Aariz Aftab, special general observer Alok Sinha, special police observer Anil Kumar Sharma, nodal officer for CAPF B.K. Sharma and Anand Kumar have been asked to be present.
Outlined in detail, the state police have designated 13 CAPF companies for the Siliguri commissionerate, as 14 out of the 47 wards within the commissionerate fall under the Jalpaiguri parliamentary constituency and the rest under Darjeeling constituency. This is followed by allocations of 75 companies for Jalpaiguri, 63 companies for Alipurduars, and 112 companies for the Coochbehar parliamentary constituency.
The state police further recommended deploying half a section of central forces for polling premises housing one or two booths (totalling 4,250 premises), one section for premises with three, four, or five booths (totalling 146 premises), and one and a half sections for premises hosting more than five booths (totalling six premises).
Additionally, the state proposes allocating one section for the 4 strong rooms and one section each for the 74 QRTs in the three constituencies.
