Muzaffarnagar:
As the riot-hit district of Muzaffarnagar gets ready for general elections, the district authorities are asking for double the amount of security.
Like any other parliamentary constituency, Muzaffarnagar was getting 25 paramilitary companies for security during elections.
But the district authorities say they will request the government over the weekend to give them a total of 50 paramilitary companies for security in the aftermath of the September riots which saw almost 60 deaths and hundreds being injured.
A total of 601 polling stations have been declared sensitive, out of 1797 polling stations in Muzaffarnagar.
Not just on ground, authorities are keeping a watch on the online activities of political parties ahead of the elections as well.
There is a dedicated team of six members set up by district election committee to check social media activities of candidates and other important leaders. If any communal or provocative comments are found on their website pages, strict action will be considered against them.
In Muzaffarnagar this is significant, as there was a video circulated of Muslims beating Jat boys, via social media by political leaders and others, ahead of the riots last year which incited hatred between the Jats and the Muslims. It was revealed later that it was a Pakistani video falsely being portrayed as a video from Muzaffarnagar.
In Shamli district, authorities have held meetings with service providers like Airtel, Idea and Uninor on the topic of bulk SMS. They have been warned that if any communal or texts which will spread rumours come to their notice, then they must immediately inform the authorities.
District administration says they will lodge First Information Reports or FIR against the service providers if they fail to notify them.