Chandigarh/Ferozepur: A central team probing the "serious lapses" in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's security during his Ferozepur tour visited the town on Friday and interacted with senior officials, while the Punjab government submitted a report to the Centre saying an FIR has been registered in the matter.
The three-member committee, constituted by the Union Home Ministry on Thursday, sought full details about the sequence of events that unfolded during Modi's January 5 visit, sources said.
The state government has maintained there was no security lapse during Modi's visit. On Thursday, it had announced a two-member panel to investigate the matter. The panel was asked to submit its report in three days.
The Punjab Police also registered an FIR dated January 6 in Ferozepur's Kulgari police station against nearly 150 unidentified protesters who blocked Modi's cavalcade on Wednesday.
Amid foggy weather conditions, the central team visited the flyover near Ferozepur on Friday morning and interacted with senior Punjab Police and civil administration officials.
The panel is led by Sudhir Kumar Saxena, Secretary (Security), Cabinet Secretariat, and has Balbir Singh, Joint Director of the Intelligence Bureau, and S Suresh, IG, Special Protection Group, as members.
The Centre has advised the committee to submit its report at the earliest.
The Union Home Ministry, meanwhile, issued show cause notices to six senior officers, including the Bathinda police chief, over the "major lapses in security" during Modi's visit.
Bathinda Senior Superintendent of Police Ajay Maluja and the five other officers were responsible for the prime minister's security during his visit to the state on January 5 and they were asked to reply to the notices.
The SSP said that he had the responsibility of getting the prime minister's route cleared in Bathinda district. There was no protest in the route from Bathinda airport to the district's border. The route was absolutely clear, he said on Friday.
Maluja said the Home Ministry has asked him to present his side and submit his reply.
The central team started its enquiry into the security breach on Friday morning, looking into the lapses which caused the cavalcade to remain stranded at the flyover near Ferozepur for almost 15-20 minutes on Wednesday, the sources said.
The team spent around 45 minutes at the flyover before heading to the BSF sector headquarters for further questioning and investigation into the matter.
At the BSF sector headquarters in Ferozepur, which is around 10 km from where the incident took place on National Highway 5, the central team remained closeted with the senior civil and police officers who were directly responsible to ensure the smooth passage of the prime minister's convoy and its foolproof security.
According to the sources, the central team summoned several senior police and civil officials, including those who were deployed for Modi's security during his visit to Ferozepur, to appear in person before them on Friday and most were present.
Earlier, the team arrived at the Bathinda airport and followed the road route to reach Ferozepur.
An FIR was registered in Ferozepur against 150 unidentified protestors on the complaint of Inspector Birbal Singh under Section 283 (danger or obstruction in public way or line of navigation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The IPC section states that whoever, by doing any act, or by omitting to take order with any property in his possession or under his charge, causes danger, obstruction or injury to any person in any public way or public line of navigation, shall be punished with fine which may extend to Rs 200.
The inspector stated he received information that some unidentified people had staged a dharna on Ferozepur-Moga Road near Piarana because of which movement of vehicles for the public, those who were going to attend the rally and VIP vehicles, was blocked.
The police official said that, he along with his colleagues, reached the site between 2:30 pm to 3 pm and after doing law and order duty went back to the police station. Later, a case was registered against unidentified protesters on his complaint.
The prime minister's convoy was stranded on a flyover due to a blockade by protesters in Ferozepur on Wednesday after which he returned from the poll-bound state without attending any event, including a rally.
Meanwhile, Punjab's Chief Secretary Anirudh Tewari wrote to the Union Home Ministry regarding the security breach, informing that an FIR has been lodged in the incident.
He said the state government has formed its own two-member panel to investigate the alleged lapses.
Tewari is learnt to have shared details pertaining to the sequence of events that unfolded on Wednesday, official sources in the state said.
The Union Home Ministry had directed the state government to file an immediate report, saying it did not ensure the required deployment, while Home Minister Amit Shah had said that such dereliction of the security procedure during the prime minister's visit was totally unacceptable and accountability would be fixed.
The incident triggered a major political row with the BJP alleging that the ruling Congress in Punjab "tried to physically harm" the prime minister, while other parties too attacked the state government over the law and order issue.
