Security will top the agenda in India’s 2009 Lok Sabha and state assembly elections’ schedule.
Chief Election Commissioner, N. Gopalaswamy, announced that the elections will be held in five phases, with the first phase beginning on April 16, and concluding on May 13.
The dates of the phases are: Phase one on April 16 (124 constituencies), phase two on April 23 (141 seats), phase three on April 30 (107 seats), phase four on May 7 (85 constuencies) and phase five on May 13 (86 seats).
Twin security issues
With the Mumbai terror attacks of last year still fresh in the memory, the Election Commission had a meeting with the chief secretaries and director general of police (DGP) of all states and union territories to review the election preparedness and the security arrangements required for conduct of elections. The country faces two security issues – one each in the internal security and external security planes.
State chief secretaries and DGPs put forth their views on the schedule and phasing of the election, security force requirements, and other logistics including the requirements of helicopters, speed boats, satellite phones etc.
The commission further directed the state chief secretaries and DGPs to develop most effective deployment parameters in consultation with state CEOs and work out the force requirement and force deployment plan.
The staggered voting is to allow about four million election workers – about half of them security personnel – manning more than 800,000 polling stations.
Review of preparedness
The commission would review these force deployment plans statewide on their visit to states to monitor election preparedness. Some of the states requested the Election Commission of India to take up with BSNL to set up communication towers in areas which are difficult to access and where the signals do not reach.
The commission also directed DGPs to make adequate advance arrangements for the forces that would be inducted from outside and to take care of their basic convenience. The commission also directed the state governments to ensure a quick and adequate compensation package for any injury or casualty suffered on poll duties.
The states were also briefed on the need to check inter-state movement of miscreants, and the need to have regional cooperation and information sharing arrangement in this regard. Especially in the Naxal-affected areas of states that are contiguous to each other and spread over many states, the DGPs were advised to be vigilant and take into account the happenings in the neighbouring states.
Political twist
The political parties are not far behind. National security is on voters’ minds, in part due to the Mumbai attacks in November. The BJP has called the Congress-led coalition “soft on terror” and advocated a harder line against Pakistan, where the attacks were planned.
BJP prime ministerial candidate L K Advani has suggested that India withdraw from a joint anti-terrorism pact that Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh signed with Pakistan’s then-President Pervez Musharraf in 2006.
Meanwhile, states such as UP and J&K will have a five-phase election, while Bihar will have a four-phase election. Voters in Maharashtra and West Bengal will vote in three phases and in two phases in Andhra, Assam and Orissa.
The counting will take place on May 16 and the next government will be constituted on June 2. The CEC also announced that state assembly elections will be held simultaneously in Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Sikkim. Nearly 714 million people are eligible to vote in this election.
