Himachal Police suspend eight cops for negligence in EVM security at Bilaspur

Sandeep Dhawal, Superintendent of Police (SP), Bilaspur, took disciplinary action against them after Shiv Chaudhary, Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP), discovered that eight policemen were missing during an inspection.

“ASP Shiv Chaudhary was on routine patrolling when he inspected the strong rooms near the District Police Control Room and at Government Degree College, Bilaspur. Five Home Guard Volunteers were present on sentry duty, but the eight policemen assigned to standby duty, who were supposed to remain near the strong rooms, were found absent,” Dhawal told The Indian Express.

“We took the lapse seriously and placed all eight personnel under suspension. They have been sent to the police lines, and a departmental inquiry has been initiated,” the officer added.

The EVMs stored at the two locations pertained to the Bilaspur and Shree Naina Devi Ji Assembly segments, where BJP candidates Trilok Jamwal and Randhir Sharma won in the 2022 Assembly elections. These results were later challenged in the Himachal Pradesh High Court, prompting the preservation of the EVMs.

Sources said a report has been forwarded to senior officers at the police headquarters in Shimla.

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