Following the announcement of Himachal Pradesh assembly elections on Friday, the Himachal Pradesh has ordered the sealing of all the state's borders and the Election Commission (EC) has sought central paramilitary forces to conduct the elections.
The EC on Friday announced that voting in Himachal Pradesh would be held on November 12 and counting will take place on December 8.
Director General of Police Sanjay Kundu ordered police officials to seal Himachal's borders with Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh to prevent movement of anti-social elements and transportation of cash, liquor and drugs, according to an official statement.
Kundu said police personnel be deployed at each barrier and entry point on Himachal's borders to prevent movement of anti-social elements to ensure free and fair voting. He further directed that a special attention be paid to the execution of non-bailable warrants, deposition of weapons in police stations, seizure of illicit liquor, drugs, cash and other articles that can be used to influence the voters.
All directions of Election Commission of India be complied with meticulously and no police official be involved in any political activity, said Kundu.
In a separate but related development, the Himachal Pradesh state election office sought 67 companies of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) for holding free and fair Assembly polls in the state, according Himachal Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Maneesh Garg.
As many as 65 CAPF companies were deployed during the last Assembly elections in 2017, said Garg on Friday.
As per the election schedule announced on Friday afternoon, a notification for Himachal elections will be issued on October 17 and the last date for the filing of nominations is October 25. Scrutiny of papers will be held on October 27 and the last date for the withdrawal of papers will be October 29.
As many as 55,74,793 people are eligible to vote in the polls as of now. The state has 68 Assembly seats.
It was expected that the Election Commision would on Friday announce the election schedule for Himachal and Gujarat. However, against such expectations, the EC only released the schedule for Himachal.
(With PTI inputs)
