Explained: Who decides to provide Y-plus security, who pays for it?

New Delhi, Sep 12: Days after her spat with Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut, Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut has been accorded Y-plus category of CRPF security by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).

As many as eleven commandos have been tasked with protecting Ranaut. Two of the commandos will provide her with mobile security, while one will guard her residence at all times across the country.

Who decides the level of protection that is to be given to an individual?

The level of security needed by any individual is decided by the Ministry of Home Affairs, based on inputs received from intelligence agencies which include the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW).

It can be seen that the agencies mostly provide a subjective measure of the threat to life or injury to a person from terrorists or any other group, based on information generated from their sources. The information can include intercepts of phone conversations, human intelligence, or a credible analysis of an open threat.

Some individuals, by the positions they hold in government, are automatically entitled to have a security cover. They include the Prime Minister and his immediate family. The Home Minister and officials such as the National Security Advisor too, generally get security cover because of the positions they occupy.

Why did Deepika Padukone not get security when she faced a threat of beheading by the Karni Sena in 2017?

Indian intelligence agencies are not accountable to any statutory body, and are subject only to the internal oversight of the MHA and the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). Because of this opacity in functioning, and the fact that there is virtually no accountability except to the government in power, VIP security is open to manipulation by the executive.

What are the levels of protection extended by the governments at the Centre and the states?

There are as many as six categories of security cover: X, Y, Y-plus, Z, Z-plus, and SPG (Special Protection Group).

While the SPG is meant only for the PM and his immediate family, other protection categories can be provided to anyone about whom the Centre or state governments have inputs of a threat. The number of personnel guarding the protectee differ from category to category. The X category is the most basic level of protection.

a. The X category on average entails just one gunman protecting the person.

b. The Y category has one gunman for mobile security, and one (plus four on rotation) for static security.

c. Y-plus has two gunmen (plus four on rotation) for mobile security, and one (plus four on rotation) for residence security.

d. Z has six gunmen for mobile security and two (plus 8) for residence security.

e. Z-plus protectees have 10 security personnel for mobile security, and two (plus 8) for residence security.

However, there are other types of security cover even within these levels. These include security of residence, mobile security, office security, and inter-state security.

Each individuals are given different kinds of security cover depending upon the threat perception. For example, if the Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh is assessed to have a threat from Maoists only in his state, the Centre may choose to give him residence and mobile security only in his state. He may be given appropriate security by the state police when he travels out.