On Wednesday (January 5), the Punjab Police allowed political protestors to block Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s convoy, leaving him stranded for about 20 minutes on a flyover about 30 km away from Hussainiwala. It has now come to light that a local Gurudwara took part in exacerbating the security breach, reported The Tribune.
In its report dated January 6 and titled, ‘PM Modi cancels Ferozepur rally as farmers block flyover; Centre claims security breach’, The Tribune informed how announcements were made by an adjoining Gurudwara urging people to block the Highway.
It added, “…Announcements were made from a nearby gurdwara due to which more farmers reached the spot and the situation turned tense. SPG sleuths then decided to take the PM back to Bathinda as they feared he might get trapped if the protesters blocked the other side of flyover also.”
In a report published by News Track, it cited media reports to claim that more farmers thronged to block the Highway after learning from the local Gurdwara that the Prime Minister was stuck. “Due to the traffic jam, PM Modi’s convoy was stuck on a flyover for 15 to 20 minutes. During this, the announcement of the PM being trapped in this regard was also announced from the nearby gurudwara. Hearing that, more farmers gathered there. Then seeing the security of PM Modi at risk, the SPG team had to decide to remove him from there,” the report emphasised.
After learning how a Gurudwara reportedly endangered the life of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, National Security Affairs Analyst Divya Kumar Soti suggested the implementation of the Religious Institutions (Prevention of Misuse) Act, 1988. “This act prescribes imprisonment of 5 years for its violation. It was enacted in 1988, in view of Khalistani terrorists occupying and misusing Gurudwaras for anti-national activities,” he informed.
It must be mentioned that the Home Ministry had dubbed the security breach of January 5 as ‘a major lapse’ in the security of the PM. It stated that the PM’s travel plan was communicated well in advance to the state government. The state government is required to make necessary arrangements for security, logistics and also make a contingency plan ready in case of unexpected issues. Currently, the Director-General of Police in Punjab is Siddharth Chattopadhyaya, a 1986 Batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer whose appointment in the post was pushed by current State Congress Chief Navjot Singh Siddhu.