Ahead of civic polls, licensed arms holders asked to deposit firearms

way2barak, September 8:- Cachar district administration has stepped up its security and law-and-order preparedness ahead of the Silchar Municipal Corporation Election-2026, with District Magistrate Shri Rahul Kumar Gupta, IAS, directing all licensed arms holders in the district to deposit their firearms at their respective nearest police stations within seven days of receiving the notice.

The order comes against the backdrop of the Silchar Municipal Corporation Election-2026 announced by the Assam State Election Commission, Guwahati, and the ongoing process of receiving nominations from intending candidates. The move is part of the district administration’s preventive measures to ensure a peaceful, free and smooth electoral process.

The District Magistrate, who is also the licensing authority under the Arms Act, 1959, issued the order on September 7 following a detailed review of the existing arms licences in the district in consultation with the Senior Superintendent of Police, Cachar, Silchar. The decision was taken after carefully assessing the prevailing law-and-order situation and in pursuance of the instructions and guidelines issued by the Assam State Election Commission.

Under the order, all arms licence holders in Cachar have been directed to deposit their firearms at the nearest police station within seven days of receipt of the notice. The concerned Officers-in-Charge and In-Charge of police stations have also been instructed to serve individual notices to the respective licence holders and ensure compliance with the directive.

The administration has made it clear that licence holders who fail to deposit their firearms within the stipulated period may face prosecution under Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

The deposited firearms will be returned to the respective licence holders immediately after one week from the declaration of the election results, as provided in the order.

The directive, however, does not apply to armed guards of banks and institutions or security guards deployed at ATMs within Cachar district, considering the nature of their security duties.

For other cases, exemption from depositing licensed firearms may be considered on a case to case basis. Applicants seeking exemption will have to submit their applications along with necessary supporting documents before the Screening Committee through the concerned police station.

The district administration has urged all concerned arms licence holders to extend their cooperation and comply with the order within the prescribed period, reaffirming its commitment to maintaining a peaceful and secure environment for the smooth conduct of the Silchar Municipal Corporation Election 2026.

This is stated in a press release issued by the Regional office of Information Public Relations Barak valley Zone Silchar Assam.