Centre accords ‘X’ category CRPF security to 4 BJP leaders in Punjab

Former Congress cabinet ministers Balbir Sidhu and Gurpreet Kangar had joined the BJP after the assembly polls, earlier this year and former Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Jagdeep Nakai and former Congress leader Amarjit Singh Tikka had joined the party before the assembly polls.

The central government has accorded ‘X’ category of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) security to four Bharatiya Janata Party leaders, people in the know of the development said on Saturday.

Punjab Police officials privy to the developments said that the security has been provided by Union ministry of home affairs on the recommendations of the security analysis of these leaders done by the central agencies. (Representative image)

The four leaders who have been provided the security cover had recently joined the party.

Former Congress cabinet ministers Balbir Sidhu and Gurpreet Kangar had joined the BJP after the assembly polls, earlier this year and former Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Jagdeep Nakai and former Congress leader Amarjit Singh Tikka had joined the party before the assembly polls.

Punjab Police officials privy to the developments said that the security has been provided by Union ministry of home affairs on the recommendations of the security analysis of these leaders done by the central agencies. “Punjab Police had no idea about the exercise being done to provide security to these agencies,” an official privy with developments said.

Even as an Intelligence Bureau official termed the provisions of security cover based on the threat perception by Central agencies, eyebrows are being raised in political circles.

State BJP chief Ashwani Sharma, however, said: “It is purely and purely based on the threat perception by the central agencies.”