Centre writes to Mayawati government, seeks explanation

Taking a serious note of "security breach" during Rahul Gandhi's recent visit to Allahabad, Centre has asked the Mayawati government to explain the reasons behind such incidents occurring frequently.

Taking a serious note of "security breach" during Rahul Gandhi's recent visit to Allahabad, Centre has asked the Mayawati government to explain the reasons behind such incidents occurring frequently.

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The home ministry has written to the UP government also asking whether there was lack of coordination between the UP police and the SPG.

The UP government had earlier complained that it is not kept in the loop about Rahul's travel plans to his constituency Amethi and other parts and said it cannot be held responsible for any incident if the state authorities are not informed well in advance about his visits.

In its communication, the ministry has asked the state government to send a report on the incident which took place on Monday when activists of Samajwadi Party's youth wing waving black flags tried to stop Rahul's car and clamber on to the vehicle but were pushed back by SPG personnel.

Sources said prima facie it looks like the local police personnel, who were deployed along Rahul's travel route, "failed" to control the protesters who tried to stop the vehicle of Rahul, a SPG protectee.

The Centre asked the state government to explain why similar incidents often take place whenever an SPG protectee travels to Uttar Pradesh.

The SPG has on this occasion duly informed the local police about the travel plan of the Congress leader, sources said.

The incident took place when Gandhi was on his way to Anand Bhavan, the ancestral house of the Nehru-Gandhis, for overnight stay after an interaction at engineering institute MNNIT.

Deputy Inspector General of Police, Allahabad, Ram Kumar, however, termed the reports of security breach as "absolutely untrue".

"These reports are absolutely untrue. We have received no complaints in this regard from the SPG team which has been camping in the city for the past couple of days. We have been working in close coordination with it," he had said.

Rahul had created a flutter by undertaking an unpublicised train journey in October 2010 in the ordinary sleeper class from Gorakhpur to Mumbai.

Following this the UP Additional Director General of Police Brij Lal said the state police was not informed about the programme of the Congress leader.

Weeks later, Rahul took the official machinery in Lucknow off guard when he landed there unannounced to attend a party workshop, prompting Lal to say that no information either oral or written was given to the DGP or security headquarters about the visit of the Congress leader.