Heavy troop deployment for polling in Rajouri & Poonch resembles military drill
Jammu: Ahead of the sixth phase of polling for sham Indian parliamentary elections on May 25, nearly 200 additional companies of Indian paramilitary forces have been deployed across Rajouri and Poonch districts in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, giving the appearance of a military drill rather than an election exercise.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the deployment of additional companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) and Armed Police is nearly equal in Rajouri and Poonch districts, with each district expected to receive approximately 100 companies of paramilitary forces and Armed Police. This deployment supplements the existing paramilitary forces and police in the two districts.
Some companies have already arrived in both districts, with others expected to be in place by Wednesday night, having been dispatched from parts of Baramulla Parliamentary constituency following the conclusion of polling in the fifth phase. The troops are currently engaged in cordon and search operations in Pir Panjal forests.
Additional companies of paramilitary forces are anticipated to arrive in Rajouri and Poonch in the coming days.
Rajouri and Poonch districts collectively have eight Assembly constituencies, with seven falling under the Islamabad-Poonch-Rajouri Parliamentary constituency, and one segment (Sunderbani-Kalakote) being part of the Jammu Lok Sabha seat. The increased troop presence reflects a scene more akin to a military drill than an electoral process in the disputed territory.
