Muzaffarpur Oct. 12: As the Assembly poll draws closer in the district on October 24, a total of 5,037 persons residing in villages in the vicinity of polling booths will be under surveillance.

Majority of those under surveillance are members of panchayati raj contractors and local influential persons having affinity with political bigwigs. Apart from 2,565 polling booths, 17 auxiliary polling booths have been set up falling under 11 Assembly constituencies in the district.

Officials posted in police stations concerned are maintaining a hawk-eyed vigil on them to foil their bid to intimidate gullible voters residing in vulnerable hamlets.

Disclosing this to The Telegraph on the eve of a joint press conference, district election officer-cum-district magistrate Anand Kishore and senior superintendent of police Sunil Kumar said the police administration has identified 497 hamlets as vulnerable following a directive by the Election Commission of India to ensure that they reach the polling booths on election day without fear.

“Central paramilitary forces would be deployed around 426 polling booths, identified as hypersensitive and supersensitive to prevent troublemakers from indulging in unfair means,” said the senior superintendent of police.

The Election Commission of India has repeatedly directed the district election officer-cum-district magistrate and the senior superintendent of police to eliminate threat perception for the electorate belonging to vulnerable hamlets by making tight security arrangement.

Moreover, the district police have tightened the noose around 10,342 persons in the district by initiating action under sections 107 and 113 CrPC to restrain trouble- makers.

Summons have been issued to them and they have been asked to appear in the sub-divisional magistrate’s court weekly on stipulated dates.

Some of them have procured bail and submitted an oath in writing not to create disturbances in the forthcoming Assembly election.

Nearly, 2,012 persons have secured bail after submitting oath in writing from the offices of sub-divisional magistrate, added the senior superintendent of police, Sunil Kumar.

Thirty companies of central paramilitary forces have already arrived in the Maoist-hit pockets and the personnel have been deployed in Naxalite-hit areas to instil confidence in the electorate.

These personnel are holding flag marches around the vulnerable hamlets daily to gain the confidence of poor voters.

Dog squads accompanied by road opening parties in Maoist-affected Minapur, Sahebganj and Paroo Assembly constituencies were checking rural roads leading to polling booths with heavy reinforcement, including metal detectors and anti-landmine devices, to thwart nefarious designs, if any, of rebels.

The district has so far registered 31 cases of violation of model code of conduct and nine chargesheets have been filed into the district court against the guilty.

Police investigation is still in progress in 22 cases of violation of code of conduct. Police seized seven pistols and 28 cartridges during intensive checking of vehicles from the arrested.

Police, with the help of the excise department, officials seized 1300 litres of illicit liquor from Kudhani village and apprehended four persons in the making of illicit wine.