200 CAPF companies deployed in Tripura amid pre-poll violence

Over 200 companies of the Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) have been deployed in Tripura as pre-poll violence continues with a BJP worker being attacked there.

A senior official said more security personnel comprising Assam Rifles, Border Security Force, Central Reserve Police Force and Central Industrial Security Force companies are expected to arrive in the state.

Three special observers of the Election Commission (EC) are already there in Tripura. The observers are Yogendra Tripathy, retired IAS officer of the Karnataka cadre; Vivek Johri, former Director General of Police of Madhya Pradesh; and B Murali Kumar, an IRS officer.


After Tripura, the observers will proceed to another poll-bound state, Meghalaya, where elections will be held on February 27. An EC official said, "The flag marches by the CAPF have already started since the second week of this month to instil confidence among political workers for campaigning and among the citizens to cast their votes freely without any fear. The security forces have been deployed well before the poll process so that they get familiar with the locality. Local police are expected to extend necessary cooperation to the CAPF".

A BJP leader of the organisation's SC Morcha unit, Suman Das, was attacked with a sharp weapon by some miscreants while he was going for his morning walk in Banamalipur constituency of Agartala. He was rushed to hospital. Police sources said two people have been detained in connection with the incident. Chief minister Manik Saha, Rajya Sabha MP Biplab Kumar Deb, assembly speaker Ratan Chakraborty and other party activists visited the hospital to meet Das. Saha claims that Das was attacked by Congress-backed miscreants.