An IAS officer was suspended by the Election Commission last night for checking Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s helicopter in Odisha’s Sambalpur on Tuesday. Mohammed Mohsin “had not acted in conformity” with instructions on Special Protection Group (SPG) protectees, said the election body’s order. But there is no rule that exempts anyone from such checks during polls, a fact that opposition parties like the Congress flagged in tweets condemning the move.
Mohammed Mohsin, a 1996 batch Karnataka cadre IAS (Indian Administrative Service) officer, has been accused of “insubordination and dereliction of duty”. Reports say as a general observer of Sambalpur constituency, the officer had carried out a sudden check of PM Modi’s helicopter, which delayed the Prime Minister by 15 minutes.
Asked to specify the rule that had been violated, an Election Commission spokesperson said: “As cited in the order…instruction dated 10.4.14 states that SPG protectees are excluded from checking.”
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