Union Home Minister Amit Shah has sought an apology from the Congress leadership over the alleged security breach during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Punjab on Wednesday. Modi's visit to the state was cut short after he was stranded on a flyover for 20 minutes due to a blockade by protesters.
"Today's Congress-made happening in Punjab is a trailer of how this party thinks and functions. Repeated rejections by the people have taken them to the path of insanity. The topmost echelons of the Congress owe an apology to the people of India for what they have done," Shah said in a tweet.
He said the home ministry has sought an immediate report from the state government and strict action against those responsible.
"The Ministry of Home Affairs has sought a detailed report on today's security breach in Punjab. Such dereliction of security procedure in the Prime Minister's visit is totally unacceptable and accountability will be fixed,” he said.
According to a ministry statement, the prime minister landed this morning at Bathinda from where he was to go to the national martyrs' memorial at Hussainiwala by helicopter and due to rain and poor visibility, he waited for about 20 minutes for the weather to clear out.
"When the weather did not improve, it was decided that he would visit the national marytrs' memorial via road, which would take more than two hours. He proceeded to travel by road after necessary confirmation of security arrangements by the DGP Punjab Police," the statement said.
The incident drew an angry reaction from BJP president J.P. Nadda who accused the Congress government in Punjab of trying "all possible tricks to scuttle" the prime minister's programmes in the state.
"The tactics used by the Congress government in Punjab would pain anyone who believes in democratic principles," Nadda said in a tweet.
Punjab and the border areas of Delhi had seen massive protests against the Centre's three farm laws since 2020. The farm laws were withdrawn only last month after which the farmers lifted their blockades of roads around Delhi.
