The Haryana Police's recent security pruning exercise has triggered a political slugfest, riling the BJP's former ally, the Jannayak Janta Party.
Following a state-wide, district-level review of security granted on the basis of threat and extortion calls, the Haryana Police on Thursday withdrew the protection of 72 individuals, freeing up over 200 Personal Security Officers from duty. The police have made it clear that this review will be an ongoing process and that security will now be limited strictly to those facing a real and assessed threat, and not based on political influence or public stature.
Terming the action politically motivated and driven by panic within the BJP government, Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) leader Digvijay Chautala said it was a reaction to his party's successful rally on December 7 in Julana. Chautala claimed that the BJP had witnessed the crowd turnout at the rally and was rattled by the JJP's resurgence.
Chautala claimed the security of four JJP leaders had been withdrawn despite them being granted protection after receiving threats. He pointed to the firing incident at singer-politician Rahul Fazilpuria's residence in Gurugram as evidence that threats to JJP leaders are real and ongoing.
Escalating his attack, Chautala questioned the state's law-and-order situation, claiming Haryana now stands fourth in the country in crime, has seen 4,500 kidnapping cases, and is witnessing an unprecedented rise in murders, loot and dacoity during Director General of Police (DGP) OP Singh's tenure.
He also slammed remarks attributed to the DGP on "bullet-riding" youth, calling such thinking regressive, and questioned whether Singh should continue to hold the post.
In a letter to colleagues urging a crackdown on criminals on Thursday morning, the DGP had referred to the issue of people misusing police security.
"Often, some show-offs are seen displaying police security at malls, cinemas, weddings, and funerals. Blacklist such opportunists. There are already vacancies in the force. What's the point of using personnel for such useless tasks?" he wrote.
The order on the withdrawal of security was issued later that same day.
'Politicising Issue'
Attacking the JJP, BJP leader and Haryana Minister Vipul Goyal said the issue should not be politicised, asserting that security is provided only after an assessment by the police and withdrawn when people misuse it to create pressure or project importance.
BJP leaders also said the party was trying to garner sympathy over the loss of security cover, insisting that those facing genuine threats will continue to receive protection.
