36,000 Cops Guard Mumbai on Poll Day
In a bid to uphold the integrity of the electoral process and safeguard the rights of voters, Mumbai Police Commissioner Vivek Phansalkar said, “Mumbai Police has implemented stringent measures to regulate activities near polling stations on Election Day. In line with these efforts, the police have issued guidelines prohibiting the assembly of individuals within a 100-meter radius of polling stations. Scheduled for May 20, the six Lok Sabha constituencies, including Mumbai, will adhere to these regulations.”
According to the directives laid out by Mumbai Police, only individuals directly involved in the electoral process will be allowed entry into the polling stations from 6 am until midnight.
The Mumbai police pressed into service over 36,000 police officials to ensure smooth voting during the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha elections in the city, As per Mumbai Police officials, on the day of voting, higher-level officials like additional police commissioners (5), deputy commissioners (25), and assistant commissioners (77) looked after their jurisdiction. As many as 2,475 police officers and 22,100 police personnel were deployed along with three Riot Control police personnel.
As additional deployment, 170 police officers and 5,360 police personnel were deployed along with 6,200 home guard police personnel. About 36 personnel from the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) and Special Armed Police (SAP) were also deployed at sensitive zones.
Special training was provided to all the deployed police personnel, stated a senior police official.
The officials added that more than 8,088 individuals with criminal histories who can threaten the law and order situation during the election have been restrained from the city.
Section 144 was imposed to restrict the assembly of people within 100m of polling stations for all six Lok Sabha constituencies in the city. Only people who are candidates or accredited agents of candidates, officials on poll duty, or public servants engaged in duty will be allowed in the vicinity of the polling station.
