Special Protection Group | 11 Nov 2019
Why in News
Recently, the central government has withdrawn the Special Protection Group (SPG) cover of the President of Congress.
- The SPG was raised in 1985 with the intention to provide proximate security cover to the Prime Minister, former Prime Ministers and their immediate family members.
- It was created after the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Parliament passed the SPG Act (1988) dedicating the group to protecting the Prime Ministers of India.
- After Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination (1991), the SPG Act was amended, offering SPG protection to all former Prime Ministers and their families for a period of at least 10 years.