Overview
- The Uttar Pradesh government told the legislative council that Akhilesh Yadav has 185 security personnel, including 24 Cobra commandos, while Mayawati has 161 and remains the only former CM with NSG cover; Rajnath Singh has 82.
- Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya said Akhilesh’s security has not been reduced and pledged there would be no lapse in his protection.
- Citing that NSG deployment is a Central prerogative, SP MLC Ashutosh Sinha urged the state to formally request the Centre to restore NSG cover for Akhilesh.
- Akhilesh accused the BJP of politicising security decisions and referenced the earlier withdrawal of Rahul Gandhi’s SPG protection while seeking a public explanation for the review that ended his NSG cover.
- After a Prayagraj POCSO court directed police to file an FIR against Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand, Akhilesh alleged the seer was being targeted over protests at the Magh Mela and said a decades-old case was revived, later expressing regret for having withdrawn a past case against Rambhadracharya.