Rajnath lays the blame at Rahul’s door for the Dhanera car incident

The Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday took a jibe at Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi for not taking the special protection group (SPG) security along with him during his foreign jaunts, seeking to know what the Congress leader “had to hide” in such tours.

“In the last two years, Rahul Gandhi was out for 72 days on 6 foreign trips, but didn’t take SPG cover. Why didn’t he take SPG cover? We want to know what Rahul Gandhi is trying to hide by not taking SPG along on foreign tours when he is a SPG protectee”, Singh told the Lok Sabha.

This is not only a violation of SPG Act but being negligent to safety issues as well, he added while responding to the Congress MPs protests in the lower house over the stone throwing attack on Rahul Gandhi’s car during his Gujarat visit (Dhanera in Banaskantha district) last week.

The Home Minister — who oversees a department in charge for special protection of VIPs _ blamed Rahul Gandhi for the attack on his car, stating that the Congress leader did not follow security protocols.

Mallikarjun Kharge, who is the Leader of the Opposition Party in the Lok Sabha, raised the issue, accused the Centre and the Gujarat government of failing to provide adequate security to Rahul Gandhi.

"When Kashmir faces stone throwers we assume it is the terrorists, but it raises a question. Where did terrorists come from in Gujarat? Are the BJP workers of Gujarat trying to become terrorists and take his life?" he asked.

Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan later adjourned the proceedings in the lower house for the day as the protests from Congress members intensified.

Later the Home Minister also tweeted that two bullet resistance cars were provided to Rahul Gandhi at Dhanera but the Congress leader sat in a non-bullet resistant car while travelling.

srivats.kr@thehindu.co.in

(This article was published on August 8, 2017)
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