MAYBACH ADDED TO PM’S SECURITY, CONG. SLAMS GOVT

New Delhi, Dec. 29: Amid speculation on the price and other details of the Mercedes Maybach added to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s security detail, government sources said on Wednesday that the new cars are not an upgrade but routine replacement as BMW had stopped making the model used for him earlier.

“The cars cost much less than the media speculation, in fact it is about one-third of the price quoted in the media,” an official source said.

The price quoted for Maybach car in a section the media is over `12 crore.

Official sources said the SPG security detail has a six-year norm to replace vehicles used for the protectee, and the previous cars were used for eight years under Modi, leading to an audit objection and comment that it was compromising the life of the protectee.

“The decisions relating to security detail purchases are based on the threat perception to the protectee. These decisions are taken independently by the SPG without taking views of the protectee.

“The widespread discussion on the security features of the protectee’s car is not in national interest as it puts in public domain a lot of unnecessary detail. This only threatens the life of the protectee,” the source added.

Meanwhile, the Congress on Wednesday slammed the government over the purchase of a luxury car for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cavalcade at a time when the economy has taken a hit due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Recalling the Prime Minister’s description of himself as ‘fakir’ (ascetic), Congress spokesperson Gourav Vallabh said every person in the country desires to be a fakir like Modi who flies in an `8,000 crore aircraft, rides in `20 crore car and spends `2,000 crore on building a home.

A Mercedes-Maybach S650 Guard was added to the prime minister’s cavalcade by the Special Protection Group.