Security Row Excuse To Try President's Rule: Punjab Chief Minister Channi To NDTV

The allegations surrounding Prime Minister Narendra Modi's security breach, which left him stuck on a highway in Punjab for 20 minutes on Wednesday, are part of a "conspiracy" to defame the state, Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi told NDTV on Friday. The Chief Minister's response comes to BJP's allegations that there was a "murderous conspiracy" against the prime minister.

Here are the highlights on this big story: 

1. "This is a big conspiracy to defame Punjab, its people and Punjabiyat. This should not happen. There should be no politics on this," he said.
2. “The PM had plans to go in the chopper. It was then changed to a road trip," said the chief minister.
3. "Some people were agitating on the road. They didn't know the Prime Minister was coming through that route. The Prime Minister's cavalcade knew about the agitation from a km away. So they took an U-turn. Where is the threat here?" wondered Mr Channi.
4. "No one raised slogans in front of the Prime Minister. No one said 'murdabad'. So where is the threat to life here? In a democratic system, if someone stages a sit-in, there's a system to vacate the road. There was no plan to go through that route," he said.
5. "Nobody was close to you for a km, no stone was thrown, no bullet was fired, no slogans were raised, nobody showed any stick. Then how can you say ‘I have been saved'? Such a sensitive statement by such a big leader, the PM of the country. You should make responsible statements. How can you do this?" asked Mr Channi.
6. "He (PM Modi) has returned from UP numerous times, changed his route in various states. So what if he changed his route or taken a U-turn in Punjab?" asked the chief minister.
7. "The maximum number of people in the freedom struggle have been from Punjab. It it, therefore, wrong to accuse Punjab and Punjabis of such acts," said the chief minister.
8. "Everyone takes pride in their places of residence. We are Punjabis. We take pride in our Punjabiyat. They put such a huge allegation on Punjab and Punjabis and portrayed us as killers. We are nationalists. We have fought in several wars for the country and the wars of '65, '71 and in Kargil and so many of us have died on the line of duty. Making us suspects? This is wrong. I have even said if a bullet is fired at the PM I'll ensure it hits me first. What else can I do? Should I slash my wrists and let my blood flow?" said Mr Channi.
9. "These allegations are completely baseless. In an attempt to deteriorate the situation in Punjab, to impose President's Rule in Punjab, the situation is being portrayed incorrectly," said the chief minister.
10. "There were 70,000 seats in the rally but not even 700 attendees. These people got to know that seats are empty. They thought it was better to turn back 10 kms away from the spot. Such petty mindedness you see that they cooked up a new 'threat to PM's life' story so that televisions don't get to show the empty seats," he said.