MHA asks cops to downgrade Atishi’s security from ‘Z’ to ‘Y’

NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Home Affairs has directed the police to downgrade the security cover provided to former Delhi CM and Aam Aadmi Party leader Atishi from ‘Z’ to ‘Y’ category, police sources said on Tuesday.

The decision comes following a review of Atishi’s threat perception by central security agencies, which concluded that there was no fresh or significant threat that warranted the continuation of ‘Z’ category security cover, an official said.

A police source said the directive was issued recently after Delhi Police’s security unit sought guidance from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on the status of Atishi’s security cover.

“Though the ministry initially advised against making any changes to the security arrangements in place for both Kejriwal and Atishi, it later instructed Delhi Police to scale down Atishi’s cover to ‘Y’ category,” the official said.

Under the ‘Y’ category security protocol, Atishi will now be guarded by a team of around 12 personnel, including two commandos from Delhi Police. It had earlier flagged the security status of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal.