Sharad Pawar questions if Z+ security is a move to gather 'authentic' information

Sharad Pawar. File Pic

NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar has said that the Z plus security cover accorded to him could be an arrangement to get "authentic information" about him as Maharashtra assembly polls are around the corner.

The Centre on Wednesday accorded Z plus security cover, the highest category of armed VIP security cover, to Sharad Pawar, official sources had told PTI.

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Asked about the security upgrade for him, the 83-year-old politician told the media in Navi Mumbai on Thursday that he wasn't aware of the reason behind the move.

"A home ministry official told me that the government has decided to give three persons Z plus security and I was one of them. I asked who the other two were. I was told RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and Union home minister Amit Shah," said Pawar.

"Maybe since elections are approaching, this can be an arrangement to get authentic information (about me)," he quipped.

A team of 55 armed personnel from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) has been earmarked as part of Pawar's Z plus security cover. A threat assessment review by central agencies had recommended a strong security cover for Pawar, official sources had said earlier.

The VIP security cover categorisations begin from the highest Z+ followed by Z, Y+, Y and X.

Sharad Pawar's NCP (SP) is a part of the opposition bloc Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), also comprising the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) and Congress, that performed impressively in the held Lok Sabha polls winning 30 of the 48 seats in the state.

The ruling Mahayuti coalition of BJP, Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and NCP headed by Ajit Pawar had to contend with only 17 seats.

Elections to the 288-member Maharashtra assembly are likely to be held in October-November.

Meanwhile, earlir, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP-SCP) supremo Sharad Pawar said that there is "uneasiness" among the people for a political change in Maharashtra.

The voting for 288 assembly constituencies will be held later this year.

Speaking at a press conference at the party's regional office in Mumbai, Sharad Pawar said, "Assembly elections are ahead. Meetings are being held. People of Maharashtra want change."

Pawar's comments come in the wake of a protest in Badlapur, Thane district, following an alleged sexual assault on two minor girls, which he cited as a clear indicator of the current political situation.

(With inputs from PTI and ANI)