PM Security Breach: Videos by Farmers Show BJP Workers, Not Protestors, Near Modi's Convoy

By Vivek Gupta

Chandigarh: As the alleged security breach involving Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s calvalcade in Punjab snowballs into a major controversy, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) – the umbrella body spearheading the protest against the Union government’s farm policies – released multiple videos on Friday to support its claim that protesting farmers were nowhere close to the spot on the flyover where Modi’s convoy halted on Wednesday, January 5.

The videos, which are widely in circulation on social media, show a group of BJP supporters, holding party flags, barely a few metres away from the Prime Minister’s convoy, raising “Narendra Modi Zindabad” slogans. The Special Protection Group (SPG) personnel are seen walking while forming a shield around the car in which the Prime Minister is sitting, as the car moved ahead slowly.

Calling it “strange” that questions were being raised against protesting farmers, senior SKM leader  Darshan Pal said, “It is very much clear from the multiple videos that those who could reach close to Modi’s cavalcade were BJP supporters, and they were seen cheering after seeing [him].”

He insisted that farmers were actually sitting at a distance, nearly a kilometre away, from the point where the prime minister’s convoy had halted.

A statement released by SKM on Thursday further clarified that the farmers at the highway protest had no information that Modi’s convoy was to pass through, adding that farmers got to know about the whole episode from media reports only after the prime minister turned around and left.

What exactly happened

So how did BJP supporters reach so close to the Prime Minister’s cavalcade on Wednesday?

The 110 km stretch between Bathinda and Ferozepur that the PM’s cavalcade was using was sealed for normal traffic once it was decided that PM would travel to Ferozepur by road, not by helicopter as originally planned, due to bad weather.

Speaking to The Wire, Moga SSP Charanjit Singh said that one side of the highway was kept ready for VVIP movement – on which Modi’s cavalcade was moving – while allowing the other side of the highway for vehicles carrying people to the PM’s rally. No one else had access to the highway once it was decided that the PM would reach Ferozepur by road, the police official added.

However, the security plan went for a toss when a farmers’ jatha led by the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Krantikari) suddenly blocked the main Moga-Ferozepur highway without being aware that Modi was traveling by road and that he would be taking that route.

Several private vehicles, including buses, carrying BJP supporters were already stuck at the portion of the highway where PM’s cavalcade was made to halt nearly one kilometre away from where protestors had congregated. This was how BJP supporters were able to come so close to the cavalcade and cheer Modi after seeing him on the flyover.

According to the statement issued by the ministry of home affairs (MHA), Modi returned to the Bathinda airport unable to move further after being stuck at the flyover for nearly 20 minutes. As the PM’s security team aborted the plan, the rally was called off in addition to canceling his visit to the National Martyrs Memorial at Hussainiwala. From Bathinda airport, he flew back to Delhi.

BJP, Congress trade barbs

From giving a memorandum to the Punjab governor to holding havans for the PM’s safety, BJP leaders in Punjab, Haryana and Delhi have been busy over the past two days highlighting the issue.

While BJP continued to charge that the alleged security breach in the PM’s cavalcade was indeed “a conspiracy to assassinate Modi”, Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu, who maintained silence until Thursday, hit back at BJP during a press conference on Friday.

Sidhu said that the PM had insulted “Punjabiyat” by claiming his life was in danger during his visit to Punjab.

“Farmers sat outside Delhi for over a year. Did the prime minister go to meet the farmers even for a minute? Had he got down from his vehicle during his rally in Punjab and gone ahead, he would have known that no one had any intention to harm him,” Sidhu told the media.

While asking the BJP to stop “indulging in politics” over the issue, Sidhu said, “Wait for a few weeks and you will get a befitting reply here. All those talking about president’s rule [in Punjab] are your [BJP] parrots.”

The Congress leader said the real motive was to find a reason for the PM to miss the Ferozepur rally and to save himself from the humiliation of addressing 500 people w