BJP leaders under threat will be given security: Sushilkumar Shinde
New Delhi: Allaying concerns of BJP that their leaders were under threat, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde on Friday assured the party that they will be provided security.
He said this after a BJP delegation led by Ravi Shankar Prasad met him and urged him to ensure security of BJP leaders during the Lok Sabha elections.
"All BJP leaders who are under threat will be provided security," Shinde told reporters after the meeting.
Prasad said they raised the issue of terror threat to BJP leaders and requested him to ensure fool-proof security to them during campaigning.
"There are some elements who want to hamper election process. We told him to ensure proper security," he said.
The Home Minister, however, said the government has no information about possible threat to them from terror groups. "We have no information regarding terror threat to BJP leaders," he said.
On Thursday, Shinde said adequate security has been given to BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.
"We have given adequate security to Modi," he had said.
BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman had on Thursday cited media reports, which quoted Intelligence sources as saying that the lives of the top BJP leaders were under threat.
"There is a threat to all BJP leaders. Based on IB sources, a section of media has been reporting that the BJP leaders' lives are under threat and the BJP is very concerned and worried," she had said.
After the meeting with Shinde on Friday, Sitharaman said, "He gave us a patient hearing and said all steps would be taken to protect out leaders."
The party said it came to know of these threats from media reports, and mentioned terror group Indian Mujahideen as one of the organisations looking to target its leaders.
"It's election time and all our leaders are travelling to different parts of the country as a part of our election campaign. We demand that Home Ministry take all possible steps to ensure their safety... No effort should be spared in ensuring fool-proof security of our leaders," the BJP memorandum said.
