Sanjay Raut and Devendra Fadnavis.
Credit: PTI Photos
Nagpur/Mumbai: After Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’ security cover was upgraded, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut took a jibe at him by wanting to know from whom the BJP leader faces threat.
“Fadnavis is a friend…we are worried…we want to know from whom he faces threat…whether it is Ukraine, Israel, Libya or North Korea?...there are commandos of Force One around him,” Raut, a Rajya Sabha member and Shiv Sena (UBT) chief spokesperson who is a close aide of former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, asked on Sunday.
Based on intelligence inputs from central agencies, the security cover of Fadnavis has been increased, according to reports.
On Saturday, Raut had asked, “Who poses a danger to Fadnavis? He is the home minister of the state. Is he facing danger from the Chief Minister? How can the Home Minister enhance his security and deploy a commando force which is trained to fight terrorists?…to our knowledge personnel of Force One have been deployed…Is Israel, Ukraine going to attack Fadnavis.”
After Raut’s back-to-back barbs, close Fadnavis aide and state Tourism Minister Girish Mahajan said that it was based on inputs received by agencies. "All such comments are meaningless. Someone may ask why Uddhav Thackeray has been given security," Mahajan said.
On the other hand, NCP (SP) supremo and former Chief Minister Sharad Pawar said if the government thinks there is a threat to Fadnavis then it should take care of it. “But if the home minister, who already has protection, needs additional security then there is a possibility the issue is a serious one,” Pawar added.
As the state Home Minister, Fadnavis is under Z-plus security cover.