THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: After being caught in the eye of the storm following the SFI workers’ protest against Governor Arif Mohammed Khan in the state capital, the police will now hold a security review meeting with the Raj Bhavan officials to chart out his new security plan.
The governor is currently provided a Z+ level of security based on threat perception and the police are planning to scale up their plans for him on his return from Delhi on December 18. Sources said if the security level is scaled up, then the police will barricade the entire road from the airport to Raj Bhavan. Also, they will divert traffic and bar people from assembling alongside the road.
“In the case of the VVIPs, road barricading and additional security measures are taken based on the threat perception they face. The police will hold a meeting with the Raj Bhavan security entourage and if they concur that such elaborate measures are required in the wake of the recent incident, then the department will think in that line,” said highly-placed sources.
Meanwhile, City police commissioner C H Nagaraju on Wednesday filed his report on the SFI protest against the governor with the state police chief. It’s reliably learnt that the report mentioned the sequence of events that culminated in the security of the governor being breached at Palayam on Monday night when he was on his way to the airport.
Sources said the report mentioned that there was a specific intelligence report that protests would be held against the governor in three spots. Based on that, the cops were posted in areas where the protestors were likely to assemble. Due to this alacrity, the cops could prevent the protestors from reaching the motorcade on two occasions. However, they could not foresee a protest erupting near Palayam where the agitators managed to reach the governor’s car.
The sources added that the report did not list any evidence suggesting willful negligence from the cops that compromised the governor’s security. However, an inquiry is on to find whether there were any unintentional lapses from the cops.
Meanwhile, The prosecution informed the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court that IPC Section 124 has been invoked against the seven accused, but expressed doubts as to whether it will stand in this particular case. Section 124 pertains to assaulting the governor with an intent to stop them from exercising their lawful power.
Assistant public prosecutor Manu Kallampally said the Section would stand only if the act against the governor was with an intent to obstruct him from discharging his duties. The SFI had announced the protest claiming that the governor was placing the Sangh Parivar nominees in the varsities. As per the assistant public prosecutor, the nominations made by the governor was an act that had happened in the past, and on that ground, expressed doubts about whether the Section is applicable in this case.
The defence counsel reiterated his argument that the act of the SFI men was just a protest and said the accused were ready to furnish the damages for vandalising the governor’s vehicle.