Ajit Karn
Tuesday, the Chief Secretary of Punjab, Vijay Kumar Janjua, announced that the state government will soon submit a “interim” report to the Ministry of Home Affairs(MHA) regarding the security breach that occurred during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in January 2022.
This comes after the Central government requested a detailed action report from the Punjab government regarding the security breach involving Prime Minister Modi. According to sources, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) sent a letter to the Punjab government requesting a detailed action taken report against the erring officers.
The Chief Secretary stated that the state government has received the report of the investigation into the incident conducted by a panel appointed by the Supreme Court and is currently reviewing it.
In a couple of days, according to Punjab Chief Secretary Janjua, the state government will submit an interim report to the MHA.
“A petition has been submitted to the Supreme Court. The SC formed a panel to conduct an investigation. The report was sent to us. They investigated the roles of all officers to determine who was responsible for the error and why.
“They have provided every detail. Now that we have the report, it is being considered. All officers are afforded an opportunity to be heard prior to disciplinary action being taken. In a couple of days, we will send an interim report (to MHA) indicating that we are taking these actions,” Januja explained.
Earlier reports indicated that Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla had requested that Vijay Janjua submit the action taken report, highlighting the Punjab government’s delay in taking action against the erring officers.
According to sources, the letter was sent earlier this month, requesting that the report be distributed as quickly as possible.
Six months ago, the report of the inquiry committee appointed by the Supreme Court to investigate the security breach during Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Punjab on January 5, 2022, indicted then-state Chief Secretary Anirudd Tewari, Police Chief S Chattopadhyaya, and other top officers for lapses.
Soon after the security breach, the MHA formed a three-member committee that summoned the Director General of Punjab Police, Siddharth Chattopadhyaya, the Punjab Additional Director General of Police, the Patiala IGP, and the Ferozpur DIG, along with more than a dozen other top Punjab Police officers. On January 5, they were responsible for the Prime Minister’s security during his visit to Ferozpur, Punjab.
The MHA then established a three-member committee under the direction of Sudhir Kumar Saxena, Secretary (Security) of the Cabinet Secretariat, Balbir Singh, Joint Director (IB), and S Suresh, IG, Special Protection Group.
The Centre is contemplating taking action under the Special Protection Group (SPG) Act against Punjab Police officers in response to the breach of Prime Minister Modi’s security during his January 5 visit to Punjab.
According to Section 14 of the SPG Act, the state is responsible for providing all assistance to the SPG during the PM’s movement.
The three-member team of the MHA began its investigation with a visit to the flyover where the Prime Minister’s convoy was stuck for 15 to 20 minutes during his visit due to a road blockade by protesters.
The MHA appointed the three-member committee to investigate the serious security lapses that exposed the VVIP to grave security risk during the Prime Minister’s visit to Ferozepur, Punjab.
The MHA had also requested that the Punjabi government “identify those responsible for this lapse and take stern action”
The action was taken after the Prime Minister’s convoy reached a flyover where the road was blocked by protestors during its visit to the National Martyrs Memorial in Punjab.
The Prime Minister was delayed on the flyover for fifteen to twenty minutes. This was a serious breach in the Prime Minister’s security.
The government of Punjab also established a high-level committee to investigate the incident.
The helicopter carrying Prime Minister Modi to the National Martyrs Memorial in Hussainiwala landed in Bathinda on the morning of January 5.
The Prime Minister waited approximately twenty minutes for the weather to improve, due to the rain and poor visibility. Due to the lack of improvement in the weather, it was decided that he would drive to the National Martyrs Memorial, which would take more than two hours.
Prime Minister Modi then proceeded to travel by road after the DGP of the Punjab Police confirmed that the necessary security measures were in place, according to the statement. When his convoy reached a flyover approximately 30 kilometres from the National Martyrs Memorial in Hussainiwala, the road was blocked by protestors.
Prime Minister Modi was delayed for 15 to 20 minutes on a flyover. It was identified as a serious security breach.
The Home Ministry then stated that PM Modi’s schedule and travel plans were communicated to the Punjab government well in advance.
In accordance with policy, the Home Ministry stated that preparations for logistics, security, and contingency planning were required.
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Also based on the contingency plan, the Punjab government was required to deploy additional security to secure any movement by road, which was evidently not done, the MHA had said at the time, adding, “after this security breach, it was decided to return to Bathinda Airport.”
