By IANS
NEW DELHI: After a major security breach on Prime Minister’s convoy, the Congress reacting to the series of events, said the security of the Prime Minister is foremost and Punjab Government has set up an inquiry on the whole issue.
Congress spokesperson Gaurav Vallabh reacting to reports said, “We have lost two leaders and we know that security is a most important issue of the Prime Minister.”
The Congress sources said that the last-minute change in program or late information by the MHA to the state government may have led to the lapse and it will be ascertained by the report. The security breach of the Prime Minister is unpardonable and the Punjab government has sought a report from officials.
Vallabh said the Prime Minister was scheduled to fly on a chopper but the program was changed last minute so the report will ascertain if it was a lapse on the part of the MHA or state officials.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday cancelled his visit to Ferozepur town in Punjab, where he was scheduled to lay the foundation stones of Rs 42,750 crore projects, at the last minute due to a security breach.
Earlier, the Prime Minister landed at Bhaisiana Air Force station in Bathinda town from where he was supposed to travel to Ferozepur by road.
As per the Ministry of Home Affairs’ statement on the PM Modi’s Punjab visit, “Today morning PM landed at Bathinda from where he was to go to National Martyrs Memorial at Hussainiwala by helicopter. Due to rain and poor visibility, PM waited for about 20 minutes for the weather to clear out.”
Around 30 km away from the National Martyrs Memorial in Hussainiwala, when the PM’s convoy reached a flyover, it was found that the road was blocked by some protesters. The PM was stuck on a flyover for 15-20 minutes. This was a major lapse in the security of PM.
The PM’s schedule and travel plan was communicated well in advance to Punjab Government. As per procedure, they have to make necessary arrangements for logistics, security as well as keep a contingency plan ready. Also in view of the contingency plan, the Punjab Government has to deploy additional security to secure any movement by road, which was clearly not deployed. After this security lapse, it was decided to head back to Bathinda airport.
