TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: Nominations of candidates for the April 12 Lok Sabha elections begin today and will go on till March 26 excluding Sunday.
Ahead of the elections the North Goa Police have identified over 100 potential troublemakers, who will be kept under strict scrutiny ahead of the Lok Sabha elections for two Parliamentary seats scheduled on April 12. The figures indicate that a total of 126 persons with criminal records have been put on police radar until the counting day on May 16.
According to information shared by the police with Herald, 88 are identified as ‘history-sheeters’, 16 ‘bad characters’ and 22 ‘troublemakers’. Most of them hail from Mapusa.
North Goa Superintendent of Police Priyanka Kashyap told Herald that they are being asked to sign a six-month ‘good behaviour bond’ under sections 107 (Security for keeping the peace in other cases) and 110 (security for good behaviour from habitual offenders) of the criminal procedure code as precautionary measure to prevent possible disorder during the election process.
“The overall total also includes election-related offenders. They are on our radar….these are preventive actions we undertake in other circumstances as well,” Kashyap explained.
The police records, so far reveal that 58 criminals have been asked to sign the bond under section 110 and 17 under section 107 of CrPC.
Meanwhile, the Home ministry has approved deployment of 10 companies of central armed reserve forces for North and South Goa to maintain law and order in the State during the polls, in addition to 5000-odd police force who have already been assigned jurisdiction for maintaining security. Two Central Armed Reserve Forces companies for North Goa arrived late Tuesday night and have been given space in Porvorim and Anjuna police stations.
Earlier, North Goa Collector D P Dwivedi during a press interaction said the identification of sensitive and hypersensitive polling stations in the district is yet to come. “It (identification process) is still going on,” he said responding to a question.
Meanwhile, the collectorate has requested the licensed arms holders to deposit their weapons by March 21, which if not will be liable for action. “Only 60 percent of the total 2,600 registered with the North Goa have deposited arms at respective police stations. Those who do not deposit within the allocated deadline will face action, Additional Collector Swapnil Naik warned.
He explained those who need exemption would have to get permission from the district magistrate with a valid reason for carrying arms.
The election commission of India has appointed three observers – IAS officers from Andhra Pradesh Udayalaxmi and Dr B D N Tiwari, from Assam-Meghalaya cadre; and expenditure observer Gautam Mondal, an IRS officer from Kolkata for the north Goa district.
Meanwhile the security deposit for general category is Rs 25,000 while those elonging from SC/ST is 50 percent of the actual deposit. Dwivedi informed that details of each of the candidate will be uploaded on the official website.
