Muzaffarpur, April 18: Candidates in the fray for panchayat elections may be debarred from contesting further polls if they indulge in violence or unlawful practices during polling.

Director-general of police (DGP) Neel Mani passed the order and other election guidelines to senior officers of Tirhut, Saran, Bettiah and Darbhanga regions.

FIRs will also be lodged against candidates found indulging in violence within 100 yards of the polling booths. If skirmishes occur within 100 yards of the booths, the polling officials would lodge FIRs against the candidates for triggering violence. The district election cell has also been asked to keep a vigil on the unlawful activities of the candidates and the cell would recommend debarring of candidates from further elections if they are found abetting violence.

On Sunday evening, Mani along with home secretary Amir Subhani reviewed the preparedness of the police for conducting the panchayat polls in the said regions. Mani directed zonal inspector-general Muzaffarpur Gupteshwar Pandey, deputy inspector-general (DIG) Darbhanga Nayyar Hasnain Khan, DIG Tirhut B.S. Meena, DIG Saran Sunil Kumar and district magistrates and superintendents of police (SPs) of Muzaffarpur, Sitamarhi, Darbhanga, Madhubani, Chhapra, Samastipur, Motihari, Bettiah, Gopalganj, Siwan and Vaishali to keep Special Task Force (STF) personnel on back up with the district police.

Muzaffarpur district magistrate Santosh Kumar Mall said: “STF and Special Auxiliary Police would be deployed in Maoist-hit pockets to tackle any eventuality.”