Chandigarh: The Punjab Government has constituted a high-level committee to thoroughly investigate the lapses that occurred during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Ferozepur on Wednesday. A spokesperson said that the committee would comprise Justice (Retd) Mehtab Singh Gill and Principal Secretary, Home Affairs, and Justice Anurag Verma. The Committee shall submit its report within 3 days, added the spokesperson.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s convoy was stuck on a flyover in Punjab for nearly 20 minutes because of a protest by farmers. The cavalcade was stuck and private cars could be seen approaching, which was a major security breach. As PM Modi’s car remained stuck on the flyover, SPG personnel sprung into action and surrounded his car to prevent any untoward incident. Soon after the incident, the Ministry of Home Affairs issued a stern letter alleging that the Punjab government had failed to deploy additional security to secure any movement by road.
Responding to the allegation of a major security lapse, Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi said on Wednesday, “We spoke to the farmers last night, after which they ended their agitation. Today, suddenly some agitators gathered in Ferozepur district.” The protesters had been agitating on the road since Monday. Channi added, “The PM was supposed to go from Bathinda to Ferozepur by air. We had asked the PMO to discontinue the visit due to bad weather and the protests. But we had no information of his [PM Modi] sudden route change.” Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi has maintained that all necessary security arrangements had been made and there was no threat to the prime minister.