Dinesh claims success in eliminating Naxals

• Special security for SC, ST and women candidates during panchayat polls
• Belt shops would be closed in places where voting being held

Vijayawada: Director General of Police V Dinesh Reddy has claimed that Andhra Pradesh has become a role model for the rest of the country in fighting Naxalites. Speaking to the media after a review meeting on panchayat elections with senior police officials of Eluru and Guntur ranges, covering East Godavari, West Godavari, Krishna and Guntur districts, the DGP said here on Tuesday that the AP police are ahead in fighting Naxalites and have succeeded in eliminating them from the State.

However, the Naxalites try to prove their presence by striking once in a while in the border areas of Khammam and Visakhapatnam districts, the top cop said and asserted that the State police would be able to handle the menace and establish peace in the State. Responding to a question on the possibility of violence breaking out over the demand for separate Telangana, the DGP said that they have no such indications as of now. He added the police could handle law and order.

Referring to the gram panchayat elections, Dinesh Reddy said that he had reviewed the security arrangements in the coastal districts and the police had already categorized the sensitive and hyper-sensitive polling stations and would provide tight security at the respective polling stations. The DGP said his department has given priority to the security of the candidates belonging to the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Backward Classes and women and would ensure that these candidates carry out their campaign without threats. Similarly, the police have decided to provide security at SC/ST localities and ensure that there would be no restrictions on them from the dominant castes.

Dinesh Reddy said the State had deployed paramilitary forces to provide security during the panchayat elections. He said that he had directed the police to form special squads with the officials of the revenue and excise departments to control the sale of liquor during elections. All the belt shops would be closed in places where voting would be held and asserted that there would be no influence of liquor in this round of elections.

Vijayawada City Police Commissioner M Srinivasulu, Eluru DIG Vikram Singh Mann, South Coastal Zone IG Sunil Kumar, North Coastal Zone IG Tirumala Rao, Guntur Rural SP Satyanarayana, Guntur Urban SP D V Ramana Kumar, East Godavari SP Sivasankara Reddy, Krishna SP J Prabhakara Rao, West Godavari SP M Ramesh and other senior police officers were present at the review meeting.

Earlier in the day, the city police were put on high alert as the Spice Jet plane in which the DGP was travelling to the city could not land for more than half-an-hour due to bad weather at Gannavaram airport. However, the police heaved a sigh of relief when the plane landed safely.