PANJIM, OCT 7
Goa police today said that additional security approved for the Home Minister Ravi Naik in May could not be provided due to adequate staff shortage. Police spokesperson SP (Special Branch) Atmaram Deshpande said that staff shortage was one of the reasons why enhanced security could not be furnished to the minister for four months.
“We have manpower issues. Goa police is going under severe crisis of manpower. The availability issue is one of the reasons why security cover enhanced to home minister was prolonged,” he told reporters at a press conference.
It is reliably learnt through sources that security review meeting in May had decided to provide additional security to the minister. It though could not be implemented immediately.
Naik was provided enhanced security cover only in September after an intelligence report pointed out threat to his family.
The security threat was disclosed during interrogation of pistol-wielding chief Michael Fernandes of giving contract to one Joe Boy to kill Naik’s son Roy.
Following this, both his son’s Ritesh and Roy are also provided security. Boy is still at large managed to give the police a slip before they could reach him. A police team who was dispatched to Mumbai to search him returned back empty handed.
Deshpande said that Michael is being interrogated to gather more details.
The officer said that the department is in utter need of additional force owing to growing responsibilities. “Responsibilities and requirements are growing more and more. We are taking up additional job making sure that we are doing a decent job,” he said.
