Harbhajan Singh gets central cover after Punjab govt withdraws security

Harbhajan, who is one of the seven lawmakers who switched to the BJP from AAP alongside Raghav Chadha, will now receive central security in both Delhi and Punjab.

In Short

• AAP workers staged protests outside Harbhajan's house on April 25
• Punjab Police withdrew his security cover on the same day: Report
• Harbhajan will now be guarded by CRPF commandos in Delhi, Punjab

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs has provided Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) security to Rajya Sabha MP Harbhajan Singh, sources said on Sunday, a day after Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) workers protested outside the cricketer-turned-politician's residence in Punjab's Jalandhar over his recent entry into the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The former cricketer, who is one of the six lawmakers who switched to the BJP from AAP alongside Raghav Chadha, will now be protected by CRPF commandos in Delhi and Punjab, sources told India Today.

The news of the central security detail for Harbhajan being approved surfaced shortly after it was claimed in a news report that the Punjab Police had withdrawn his security cover.

The police security cover for the parliamentarian, comprising 9–10 officers, was withdrawn on Saturday, news agency PTI reported, citing sources. Meanwhile, security personnel of the CRPF were seen deployed outside his residence in Jalandhar on Sunday.

During the protests on Saturday by AAP workers, the word "gaddar" (traitor) was spray-painted on the boundary wall of Harbhajan's house. Similar demonstrations were also held outside the residences of Ashok Mittal and Rajinder Gupta, two other Rajya Sabha members who left AAP and joined the BJP, in Punjab.

The protests came a day after Raghav Chadha announced his exit from AAP and said he would join the BJP along with six other parliamentarians of the party – Sandeep Pathak, Ashok Mittal, Harbhajan Singh, Rajinder Gupta, Swati Maliwal and Vikramjit Sahney.

In the immediate wake of the exodus, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann labelled the seven leaders "gaddars."

The high-profile mass exit from AAP came weeks after Chadha was removed as the Arvind Kejriwal-led party's Deputy Leader in the Rajya Sabha. The demotion deepened a pre-existing rift between AAP and the lawmaker.

While announcing his departure from AAP on Friday, Chadha alleged that the party had strayed from its principles, values and core morals, justifying his decision to join the BJP. He said he and the six other departing MPs had merged with the saffron party as a faction.

- Ends
(With inputs from PTI)