Chidambaram: Protect PM but don’t arrest people over unverified letters

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on June 11 said the government should take required measures for security of the Prime Minister but it should not make arrests on account of unverified threat letters.

A Union Minister knew some of the Elgar Parishad activists arrested in connection with Bhima-Koregaon violence and he said they had nothing to do with Maoists, Chidambaram told reporters in Delhi.

Pune police had on Thursday told a court that a letter was seized from one of the arrested, which mentioned of a plan to "assassinate" Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"So let the government take whatever measures to provide complete, fool-proof protection to security of Prime Minister of India. We all are interested in interest of Prime Minister."

BJP ally Shiv Sena on June 11 had mocked the alleged assassination plot against the Prime Minister as a "thrilling horror story" and added that “such information often does rounds ahead of elections”.

On June 10, Nationalist Congress Party President Sharad Pawar had also come down heavily on the Maharashtra police and state government, for arresting prominent Dalit activists on June 6 in connection with alleged provocative speeches at the Elgar Parishad gathering in Shaniwarwada, Pune on December 31, 2017. Pawar was dismissive of a letter recovered from them by Pune police purporting to show plans to assassinate PM Narendra Modi, saying “They say there was a threatening letter. I spoke to a retired police officer, who had worked for CID. He said there is no substance in the letter. The letter is being used to garner people's sympathy,” said Pawar.