Punjab govt issues notices to top cops for breach of PM’s security after Centre’s prod

The Punjab government has initiated disciplinary proceedings against senior officials including the then state police chief for the security breach during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit in January 2022.

Show-cause notices have been issued to then DGP S Chattopadhyaya, who has since retired, Inderbir Singh, the then deputy inspector general (DIG) of police of Ferozepur range, and Harmandeep Singh Hans, the then senior superintendent of police (SSP) of Ferozepur.

Punjab government’s move comes after the Centre asked the state government to submit a detailed action-taken report on the issue in accordance with the Supreme Court appointed inquiry committee’s report.

During PM Modi’s Punjab visit in January 2022, a road was blocked by some protesters. The Prime Minister was stuck on the flyover for 15-20 minutes. This was a major lapse in the security arrangements as the state police had been informed that the Prime Minister would be travelling by road to the National Martyrs Memorial in Ferozepur and had given the go-ahead for the trip.

The Supreme Court-appointed inquiry committee headed by Justice Indu Malhotra, looking into the breach in security during PM Modi’s Punjab visit on January 5, 2022, submitted six months ago, indicted then-state Chief Secretary Anirudh Tewari, Police DGP S Chattopadhyaya, and other top officers of the Punjab government for lapses in the security arrangements.

The Justice Malhotra committee report has stated: “The events reveal a major and unprecedented lapse in the security arrangements of the Prime Minister. The security of an elected leader in a parliamentary democracy is of paramount importance for the national security of India.”

The state government officials were required to follow procedure as laid down in the blue book and make necessary arrangements for logistics, and security as well as keep a contingency plan ready for the Prime Minister.