New Delhi: After a shoe was thrown at Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, the police claimed on Sunday that the attacker had said he was asked to do so by a politician. But now, sources tell NDTV that the attacker, a suspended policeman, did not mention a politician in his interrogation.
Sunday, Independence Day, was meant to be an occasion for Omar Abdullah to reach out to the people. Instead, the focus of Independence Day celebrations in Srinagar turned out to be a major security breach. (
See Pics: Other shoe hurling incidents)
The suspended head constable, Abdulla Ahad Jaan, hurled the shoe at the chief minister from the third row of the VIP enclosure soon after Omar unfurled the national flag. Security for the function was so high that no civilians - not even schoolchildren - were allowed at the venue, leave alone the VIP enclosure.
An embarrassed security apparatus is unable to explain how a suspended cop managed to get into the high-security zone. Or if there were others involved?
The police said Abdulla was mentally unsound and had a case of extortion against him. Later in the evening, the police claimed Abdulla Ahad Jaan had said he was approached by a politician and that he used the entry pass of a political leader to gain entry into the venue.
The Chief Minister took the attack in his stride, saying, "I have no regrets that today as soon as I came a person shouted slogans. But if it's a shoe today, and not a stone in our hands, it couldn't be better."
Fifteen policemen, including four officers, have been suspended for the security breach.
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Video Special: Shoe attacks - hits and misses)