Twitter
Advertisement

Centre to review, prune VIP security list

Sources said the Z plus list will definitely be pruned after an assessment is made

Latest News
article-main
Picture for representational purpose
FacebookTwitterWhatsappLinkedin

With the VIP security list reaching a high of over 450, the Centre is reviewing threat perception of many, looking to bring down the numbers. This is an all-time high compared to previous years when the number protected under UPA was around 350.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been emphasising on the need to end VIP culture, and the government earlier banned beacon lights on vehicles of ministers, judges, and other senior officials.

Politicians like former Bihar CM Lalu Prasad Yadav, UP's father-son duo Mulayam and Akhilesh Yadav, BSP supremo Mayawati, and former Chief Ministers of Assam Tarun Gogoi and Prafulla Kumar Mahanta, are among those enjoying Z plus security, the highest category of security cover. Some of these might be downgraded after the review, sources said.

The current UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath also enjoys Z plus security.

Sources said the Z plus list will definitely be pruned after an assessment is made. At present, 14 people enjoy the services (protection) of the elite National Security Guards. There are nearly 550 commandos of the force protecting these VIPs. While the number remains the same as during the UPA government, sources said, after the assessment, this could come down, too.

While most of those included in the list are politicians, Yoga guru Baba Ramdev, and religious personalities like Mata Aamritanandamayi, Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, receive security cover from the Centre.

The committee, headed by the Union Home Secretary Rajeev Gauba, is likely to make an assessment of the threat perception based on intelligence inputs before reviewing the status.

Other than the National Security Guards who provide security to those with highest threat perception, the Central Reserve Police Force, and the Central Industrial Security Force are involved in giving a security cover.

Z-plus security

Former Bihar CM Lalu Prasad Yadav, UP’s father-son duo Mulayam and Akhilesh Yadav, BSP supremo Mayawati, and former Assam CMs Tarun Gogoi and Prafulla Kumar Mahanta are among those enjoying Z-plus security.

Find your daily dose of news & explainers in your WhatsApp. Stay updated, Stay informed-  Follow DNA on WhatsApp.
Advertisement

Live tv

Advertisement
Advertisement