THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : It’s official. The CRPF has replaced Kerala Police in providing inner perimeter protection to Governor Arif Mohammed Khan. A 42-member CRPF team will handle Khan’s security at close quarters, while the state police will continue providing middle and outer perimeter protection. The decision was taken during a meeting between officials from the police, Raj Bhavan, and CRPF here on Tuesday.
The Centre had decided to deploy CRPF to provide security to the governor, who enjoys Z-Plus security, in the wake of his run-ins with SFI members who have intensified their agitation against him. The governor, who has been caught in the SFI’s cross hairs over his nomination of Sangh Parivar-affiliated members to the senate of universities, had sought the Centre’s intervention after black flags were waved at him by SFI members near Nilamel in Kollam on Saturday.
Though CRPF men will soon officially take up the task, the status quo will prevail regarding the deployment of Kerala Police personnel at the Raj Bhavan. “CRPF will deploy 42 men. However, Kerala Police is unlikely to scale down its manpower at the Raj Bhavan. The CRPF personnel will face a language barrier and require logistic support. The state police will chip in with support as and when needed,” a source in the Kerala Police said.
Though there is a change of guard in the inner perimeter, the state police will continue to perform escort and pilot duties. The CRPF men will also be part of the governor’s motorcade. Regarding the vehicles that ought to be provided to the CRPF men, the meeting arrived at a temporary decision. The CRPF men will continue using the state police vehicles for a while and a permanent decision on whether to continue with that will be taken later.
The intelligence wing of the state police will continue sharing inputs regarding the governor’s security as the CRPF does not have an independent mechanism to garner intel from the ground. The state police will continue to decide the routes of the governor’s motorcade and they will be responsible for crowd management as well as dealing with protestors.
Protest: Magistrate court grants bail to SFI workers
The Kottarakkara Judicial Magistrate Court 2, on Tuesday, granted bail to 12 SFI workers who took part in the black flag protest against Governor Arif Mohammed Khan in Kollam last Saturday. The defence counsel argued that the workers were not involved in the attack on the governor’s car, as claimed by him, but engaged in a peaceful protest.