Congress president Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra has welcomed the government's reported move to withdraw the "so called and never used, Security Exemption Privilege" given to him at the Indian airports.
Reacting to a recent news report in a leading national daily, Vadra issued a statement on his Facebook wall saying he was "glad" and "awaiting" the decision.
"Finally!! I am glad and have been awaiting this so called and never used, Security Exemption Privilege to be removed at Airports. I am and have been more than ready to give a written consent to remove my name from this VVIP list," Vadra posted on Facebook on Saturday afternoon.
"I am no VIP and I have expressed my view on this subject in the past as well. Please stop wasting peoples time with this news, every few days! Cheers," he says in the post.
A day before, reacting to a blurb on top of the front page of The Economic Times, which highlighted the story in the newspaper, Vadra had jibed at the daily, asking if it was "really top news in India".
"Is this really top news in India ?! They really want to feel me !!," Vadra's Facebook post on 21 August read. He supported the post with the daily's picture that contained the headline "Robert Vadra may be frisked at airports soon".
Citing a communication between the ministries of home affairs and civil aviation, the daily had reported that Vadra might have to stand in queue for security checks at airports after the home ministry informed it that it doesn't consider the threat perception on him grave enough to warrant his inclusion on the no-frisk list.
"We have received the approval from the home ministry for a review of the category of people who are not frisked at airports in the country. The approval came during the second week of June and the review is likely to be started soon," The Economic Times reported quoting a civil aviation ministry official.
"The Bureau of Bureau of Civil Aviation Security and the civil aviation ministry will begin the review of 33 categories of people," he said, adding that the "move to trim the list may affect some foreigners too".
The current no-frisk list includes the President, Vice President, Prime Minister, Union cabinet ministers, opposition leader, Supreme Court judges, high court chief justices, chief ministers and their deputies, governors and ambassadors.
