Mumbai, Sep 28 : The Mumbai Police have beefed up security in and around the city especially at crowded and sensitive places in view of possible security threats, tipped off by central intelligence agencies, official sources said here on Saturday.
The police have been directed to maintain a strict vigil, particularly in public places and hotspots, religious or tourist places and other important locations, besides tabs on vehicular movements. Besides, mock drills are being conducted – including one at a minority-dominated location in south Mumbai on Friday – and police deployment has been increased at some important locations and public places including beaches.
The directives come ahead of the upcoming Navratri-Durga Puja festivals, followed by Diwali and the likelihood of Maharashtra Assembly elections being announced soon. Major religious places including temples have been advised to increase their internal and external security detail, while Zonal Deputy Commissioners of Police have been asked to keep an eye on their jurisdictions for any suspicious activities.
However, officials assured that the enhanced security measures are precautionary in the interests of the safety and security of the people and public installations. It may be recalled that a political party had laid siege to the All India Radio offices, near Churchgate and squatted outside the state government headquarters, while an allegedly deranged woman sneaked into the high-security Mantralaya on Friday and attempted to vandalise the office of Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis, sparking security concerns.
The Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) has been carrying out a massive campaign against the ruling MahaYuti government accusing it of a total collapse of the law-and-order situation in the state and demanding the sacking of Fadnavis.
The MVA and Aam Aadmi Party have also demanded that the Election Commission of India (ECI) should forthwith remove the Director-General of Police Rashmi Shukla to ensure free and fair assembly elections.
The state Congress has already submitted two memoranda on the issue to the ECI and state election body in this regard, but there has been no reaction from the other side so far. IANS