Mumbai: Maharashtra's ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi government announced a reduced security cover for former Maharashtra Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly Devendra Fadnavis and his family.
Also, the security cover of MNS chief Raj Thackeray, former Uttar Pradesh governor Ram Naik some BJP leaders including state chief Chandrakant Patil, former CM Narayan Rane and Sudhir Mungantiwar have been withdrawn.
The Uddhav Thackeray-led government issued a notification on Thursday. It said that the decision was taken after a review of the security cover provided to the political leaders in the state based on "prevailing threat perception".
The changes made include 16 withdrawals, 13 new protectees, 11 downgrades and two upgrades/
The move has drawn sharp criticism from the opposition party BJP. Maharashtra BJP spokesperson Keshav Upadhyay accused the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi of "vendetta politics".
"The decision shows what kind of a mindset this government has. During the COVID-19 lockdown Fadnavis was going to every nook and corner of the state, while Chief Minister Thackeray was sitting at home," Upadhyay was quoted as saying by PTI.
According to the new notification, Fadnavis will now get 'Y-plus security with escort', instead of the 'Z-plus' cover. While his wife Amruta Fadnavis and daughter Divija has been downgraded from 'Y-plus with escort' to 'X' category.
