Twitter users call fan touching PM’s feet a scripted security breach

A man named Swapan Marit, as per a Times of India report, “created a major scare” on May 25 in Santiniketan, West Bengal as he breached all layers of security around Prime Minister Narendra Modi, reached the dais and touched his feet even as SPG personnel and state police personnel were manning the ‘sanitised zone’. The SPG, or Special Protection Group, is responsible for the proximate security of the Prime Minister of India.

Although seven layers of security were present to guard the Prime Minister, who was at Visva-Bharati University for its convocation, Marit successfully reached the dais, prompting Twitteratis to rule it a rather “staged show” than a breach of security.

Surprisingly, despite the Prime Minister himself saying in a public speech after demonetisation in November 2016 that “my life is at risk after the decision”, and Delhi Police too claiming in the past to have received a call where they were informed of “a conspiracy to kill PM Modi”, the SPG personnel guarding the Prime Minister did nothing, even as Marit went right up to the PM. The Prime Minister too looked unperturbed, and responded by accepting a Tagore portrait presented by Marit before he was finally taken away.

Congress leaders call it a “Staged Drama”

Former Delhi Minister Md Haroon told National Herald, “It is a staged drama. Else, the whole security squad should have been suspended by now. How can such a breach happen and the PMO take no action against the security personnel present there for the Prime Minister’s safety,” Haroon asked, adding, “it is not a question of Narendra Modi’s security, it is the question of the security of the Prime Minister of India.”

“Such a drama was scripted to divert public attention from real issues like the petrol/diesel prices. Additionally, the PM’s popularity has also decreased immensely,” alleged Haroon.

Four-term Congress MLA in Delhi, Naseeb Singh also alleged that “the drama was indeed staged”. “All he (Narendra Modi) has done in the past four years is stage such dramas and portray himself like a god. He seems unperturbed of the real concerns of the public and does not attend to them, that’s why he has to get such scripts written to tell the public that he is so popular,” Singh alleged.

Twitter users also call it a “pre-planned stunt”

The act, said many on Twitter, was “scripted” as they also highlighted how “SPG training has gone downhill”, as an SPG personnel is seen standing at the back, holding his gun but doing nothing to move Marit or take him into custody.

In a country where two Prime Ministers have been assassinated, said a Twitter user, this failure by the SPG guard is “criminal”.

Many others too said that they felt the incident was a well planned one done for “publicity”.

*Attempts to contact BJP leaders Manoj Tiwari and Ramesh Bidhuri for comment returned no response by the time of publishing. The article will be updated should we receive their response