SUHAIL KHAN
BARAMULLA, Sep 30: Ahead of the last phase of assembly elections, the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of the North Kashmir Range said that around 400 companies of the Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) have been deployed in the northern region of Kashmir to ensure a peaceful atmosphere.
Speaking to Kashmir Despatch, DIG North Kashmir Range Maqsood-ul-Zaman said, “All the CAPF (Central Armed Police Force), armed police, CRPF, and the rest of the forces, there are around 400 companies which have been deployed in the north Kashmir range with good cohesion and coherence for the conduct of a free and fair election on the third phase on Tuesday.”
He stated that the deployment is in addition to the forces, including the Army and Border Security Force (BSF), who are maintaining a constant vigil on the Line of Control (LoC) in the three border districts.
DIG Zaman said the deployment has been made after undertaking coordination meetings with the CAPF, ensuring good cohesion and a better understanding among the forces.
“Our duty is to provide a free, fair, and peaceful atmosphere during the polling day so that the people come out to vote,” he said, adding, “our duty is to provide people a peaceful environment and to facilitate them to vote for the candidate of their choice without any problem.”
He further stated that the security arrangements have been made as per the directions of the Election Commission of India (ECI) guidelines, and these are being strictly implemented.
Jammu and Kashmir is set to hold the third and final phase of elections for its 90-member Assembly on October 1, with campaigning ending on Sunday. The first phase of voting took place on September 18, and the second phase concluded on September 25. On Tuesday, voting will take place in 40 constituencies, and the counting of votes will be conducted on October 8, with the results expected to be announced after that.
More than 3.9 million voters are eligible to cast their ballots across the 40 constituencies spread across seven districts. Voting will be conducted between 7 am and 6 pm, and security measures have been put in place to ensure a smooth and peaceful process. At least 415 candidates from various parties and independent candidates, including former deputy chief ministers Tara Chand (Congress) and Muzaffar Hussain Beig, are in the fray in the third phase.
A total of 5,060 polling stations have been set up across the seven districts, including Kupwara, Baramulla, Bandipora, Udhampur, Samba, Kathua, and Jammu. Each polling station will have a team of four election staff, including a Presiding Officer, summing up to over 20,000 polling staff deployed for this phase.
In Jammu, 24 seats will see a close contest between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress, while in North Kashmir, 16 seats will see competition between INDIA bloc candidates from the National Conference-Congress and representatives from the Jammu Kashmir People’s Conference and Awami Itihad Party.
