In what can be considered a psychological relief to Telugu Desam Party president and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu, the Andhra Pradesh high court on Wednesday restored most of his security cover, which was allegedly reduced by the YSR Congress party president and chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy.
A high court bench headed by Justice Durga Prasada Rao delivered the judgment directing the government to provide security with 97 cops from the state police department.
This is besides the security by National Security Guards as per the Z plus category granted him by the Centre after the Maoist attack on his life at Alipiri in Tirupati in October 2003.
The HC also directed that the government appoint a chief security officer (CSO) and add jammers in Naidu’s convoy.
The court gave three months of time to the state police to arrive at an understanding with the NSG on who should take care of the closed (inner) security of Naidu.
In June last, the YSRC government reduced the security cover to 78 on the pretext that Naidu was no more a chief minister but only a leader of the opposition.
The Jagan government also withdrew security at his residence in his native Naravaripalle in Chittoor district, besides at Hyderabad.
The police restricted the security to his office and residence in Amaravati after Naidu’s TDP lost power and also withdrew a couple of vehicles from his convoy.
The government also slashed the security cover for Naidu’s son Nara Lokesh, who is a Member of the Legislative Council.
