
Elaborate security arrangements have been made for free and fair polls for the general elections to the Haryana Assembly tomorrow. Around 65,000 personnel of para-military forces and state police will be on duty to ensure a peaceful poll, according to sources in the Election Commission. Around 1.31 crore people will vote tomorrow.
The Centre has sent 68 companies of paramilitary forces for election duty in Haryana though the state had demanded 125 companies of these forces from the Centre. "Haryana has a record of having peaceful elections and these forces along with the state police may just be enough from the security point of view. For the Lok Sabha elections early this year, the Centre had dispatched only 53 companies,'' said Sajjan Singh, Chief Electoral Officer.
As many as 3,214 polling stations in the state have been bracketed vulnerable or sensitive polling stations. In the Lok Sabha elections early this year, the number of sensitive polling stations in the state was a little less at 3,208. The maximum number of 249 vulnerable polling stations are in Bhiwani district where Kiran Chaudhary, Ram Kishan Fauji, Shankar Bhardwaj, Ranbir Mahendra and Nripendra Singh Sanghwan are in the fray. Hisar district, the stronghold of Bhajan Lal of the Haryana Janhit Congress is second in the list of most vulnerable polling stations at 215.
Sonepat district is third in the list with 209 sensitive polling stations. Kuldeep Sharma, working president of the Congress, Jagbir Malik, Shri Krishan Hooda and Anil Thakkar are the main contestants in the area. Karnal and Jind districts have 188 and 184 sensitive polling stations. Birender Singh, Om Prakash Chautala, Sumita Singh, Bhim Sain Mehta and Mange Ram Gupta are contesting polls from different constituencies in the two districts. Extra forces have been deployed in constituencies having more sensitive polling stations.
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