RAIPUR: Following a noticeable decline in Maoist activities across Bastar, the Chhattisgarh government has chalked out plans to review the security covers provided to political leaders and public representatives in the region.
Dy CM and Home Minister Vijay Sharma stated that assessing individual protection levels is essential in light of evolving ground realities. He stressed that the state’s decision-making will hinge strictly on realistic threat perceptions.
“The review will determine whether the level of security provided earlier is still required under the present circumstances,” Sharma said. Leaders facing severe, verified threats will retain their security cover, while reductions may occur where risks have significantly diminished. The government clarified that no final decision has been finalised yet, and no blanket withdrawals are taking place.
Currently, around 100 public representatives and political figures in the Bastar division receive dedicated security personnel, with around 40 leaders assigned heavy protection detachments. A major objective of the security audit is to assess whether these forces can be optimised and redeployed to strategic counter-insurgency and law-and-order duties.
The announcement has raised concerns among local political figures across party lines. There are senior BJP leaders who urged the administration to consider ground realities, noting that leaders frequently tour remote, interior belts where vulnerabilities might persist. A former minister and a BJP leader voiced strong reservations, terming any potential withdrawal or drastic curtailment of protection a “suicidal step”.
The administration, when contacted, reiterated that decisions will proceed on a case-by-case basis following thorough intelligence evaluations.
For decades, Bastar and other Maoist-affected areas in Chhattisgarh stood as an epicentre of conflict, and safeguarding the lives of public representatives and on-ground security forces required constant vigilance, tactical recalibration, and an uncompromising security doctrine for the state government.