Kerala Police directed to tighten CM’s security at public events, deploy plainclothes personnel

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Keralam Chief Minister V. D. Satheesan (file) | Photo Credit: NIRMAL HARINDRAN

The Intelligence wing of Kerala Police has directed District Police Chiefs in Keralam to strengthen security arrangements for Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan at public functions and during his travels, citing concerns over uncontrolled crowds, including mediapersons, who approach him and come into physical contact with him.

In a confidential alert issued on September 26, the Additional Director General of Police (Intelligence) cautioned that such situations could result in serious security lapses, considering that the Chief Minister belongs to the highest security category in the State.

The communication, issued from the State Special Branch headquarters in Thiruvananthapuram, instructed District Police Chiefs to ensure adequate deployment of police personnel at venues attended by the Chief Minister and along his travel routes. Besides uniformed personnel, police officers in plainclothes must be deployed to prevent untoward incidents and ensure his complete security, the order stated.

The alert observed that uncontrolled crowds, including journalists, have been approaching the Chief Minister during his arrival at public functions and getting sufficiently close to make physical contact with him. The District Police Chiefs have been specifically instructed to adopt necessary precautions to ensure that no untoward incidents occur.

Incidentally, the instructions come against the backdrop of recent instances in which mediapersons were allegedly prevented from approaching the Chief Minister at public engagements.

Senior officials of the Kochi City Police reportedly prevented journalists from posing questions to Mr. Satheesan when he arrived to participate in the function on September 26.

A similar situation arose in Idukki, where the Chief Minister purportedly directed the police to move a group of mediapersons away after emerging from a meeting with senior officials and department heads. While the journalists had sought his response to contentious issues, including the allegations concerning his recent chartered plane journey, the Chief Minister said the people who had arrived to submit petitions were being inconvenienced in the commotion.

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