The central government has mandated the full withdrawal of NSG commandos from VIP security. From next month, the responsibility of VIP security in the country will be taken over by CRPF. The Home Ministry has instructed for the CRPF battalion, previously assigned to Parliament security, to now be included in the VIP security wing.
At present, there are nine VIPs in the nation receiving Z Plus security, which is managed by Black Cat Commandos from National Security Guards. This group of nine important personalities comprises Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, BSP Supremo Mayawati, Union Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, senior BJP leader Lalkrishna Advani, Union Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, BJP leader and former Chhattisgarh CM Raman Singh, former Jammu Kashmir CM Ghulam Nabi Azad, National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah, and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu. The CRPF will now be responsible for their security.
Sources say the Home Ministry ordered the completion of duty transfers between the two forces in one month. There are currently six battalions within the CRPF dedicated to VIP security, with a request being made to add a seventh battalion to the team. The new battalion is identical to the one that protected Parliament until a couple of months back.
Following a security breach last year, a senior official stated that responsibility for protecting Parliament was transferred from CRPF to CISF. Sources have stated that a team of Andhra Pradesh Police recently visited Delhi to switch the security of their chief minister from NSG to CRPF as part of managing the new assignment.
Sources indicate that two out of the nine VIPs, which include Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath, will also be covered by the Advanced Security Liaison (ASL) protocol observed by the CRPF. ASL requires VIPs to pre-scan the location they will be visiting.
The CRPF abides by a similar protocol for its five VIPs, which include Home Minister Amit Shah, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, and three Congress leaders from the Gandhi family. The decision to relieve the NSG from VIP security duties was being prepared since 2012, when NSG leaders had envisioned a scenario in which multiple terror attacks could occur at various locations in the country, requiring commandos to be deployed in multiple directions.
The central government has chosen to “restructure” the NSG and station “strike teams” of commandos in specific high-danger zones near the Ram temple in Ayodhya and around vital properties in the southern region of the country. The NSG will no longer be involved in VIP security starting in November, following over twenty years of service by the ‘Black Cat’ commandos in this role.
The NSG will be observing its 40th anniversary on Wednesday.
The central government feels that the NSG should concentrate on its primary responsibilities like addressing counter-terrorism and anti-hijacking tasks, stating that protecting high-risk VIPs is placing a strain on its specialized abilities. Sources had indicated that approximately 450 ‘Black Cat’ commandos would become available once the NSG is no longer tasked with VIP security responsibilities.