INDIA VOTES 2024: Cash, drugs, liquor worth Rs 2 cr seized since poll code imposition

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, March 22

Since the imposition of the model code of conduct (MCC) on March 16, the district administration has confiscated cash, drugs, liquor and precious metals worth approximately Rs 2 crore. Surveillance teams have seized Rs 40 lakh in cash, along with drugs valued at Rs 1.48 crore, liquor worth Rs 18.14 lakh and various other items.

While addressing a press conference on Friday, District Election Officer-cum-Deputy Commissioner Sakshi Sawhney, accompanied by Khanna SSP Amneet Kondal, SSP Ludhiana (Rural) Navneet Singh Bains, said a total of 126 flying squad teams comprising a magistrate and police officials were constituted in the district. The teams were given vehicles mounted with cameras ensuring real-time feed to the control room and keeping a close vigil in the field.

Sawhney said since the imposition of the MCC, 9,360 hoardings, banners and posters, including 5,376 from public and 3,984 from private properties, had been removed in the district. The DEO said 94 per cent of complaints received by the administration manually, on the NGSP portal, and C-vigil had already been resolved.

She said directions had been issued to all arms license holders in Ludhiana district to deposit their licensed weapons and ammunition at the nearest police stations by March 31. Any person wanting to seek exemption due to compelling reasons should apply to the screening committee for review of the decision with grounds for the particular case. Any such representation would be decided by the screening committee, preferably within 24 hours. Non-compliance with the order would lead to prosecution under the appropriate sections of the IPC and other relevant laws. She also said the district administration would also keep a close vigil over paid news and advertisement content in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls as per the guidelines of the Election Commission (EC). The MC committee will closely monitor news content in news channels/social media as well as newspapers.

She said the EC had now provided the facility to authorised journalists engaged in the coverage of polling day to cast their votes through postal ballot. This facility will be available only to those journalists who have been issued authorisation letter by the EC for coverage of election work. Journalists would have to apply for voting through postal ballot by attaching their authorisation letter.

Expressing her commitment to ensuring transparent, free, and fair elections in Ludhiana, the DEO said holding elections peacefully and transparently was the top priority of the administration and every effort would be made to accomplish this gigantic task without any hindrance.

Sawhney and police officials said the administration would make elaborate security arrangements for 381 polling stations with vulnerable pockets in the district. They said the administration had completed the vulnerability mapping of the district as per which 381 out of 2,919 polling stations had been identified with vulnerable pockets. Special care would be taken to man the vulnerable polling stations across the district.

Directions for hotels, marriage palaces

The DC directed owners of hotels and marriage palaces to submit report of their bookings daily to the election office. Presiding over a meeting with them here, she said during the imposition of poll code, the administration would keep a strict vigil over bookings of hotels and marriage palaces to keep a tab over political activities.

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