Bengaluru, May 14: With polling passing off peacefully, the focus has now shifted to ensuring Tuesday’s counting of votes for the assembly polls also goes off without a hitch.
State police and other security personnel are taking no chances and have turned counting centres located in different parts of the state into fortresses. Except for candidates, agents who have authorised passes from respective political parties and media persons, counting centres will be out of bounds for the public.
Police have also banned celebrations, processions and bursting of crackers around the 38 counting centres — five are in Bengaluru — to avoid any untoward incident, while prohibitory orders will be imposed from Monday evening. Security measures at each counting centre will be supervised by an officer of the rank of superintendent of police (SP) or deputy commissioner of police (DCP). Designated areas will be demarcated where people will be allowed, while all police officers below the rank of SP will be on bandobast duty.
Kamal Pant, additional director general of police (law and order), said: “Paramilitary forces, armed forces including the Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP) and civil policemen will be deployed to control the crowd and avoid any untoward incident at each counting centre. The respective SPs have been given the liberty to use Rapid Action Force (RAF) troops to maintain law and order in their jurisdiction.”
Bengaluru police have planned a three-layer security arrangement at the five counting centres in the city.
Over 100 police and a company of CRPF personnel will be deployed at each centre, while police (constables up to inspector rank) will guard the strong rooms in three shifts.
Prohibitory orders will remain in effect until late night on Tuesday.
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