New Delhi: The Centre has extended the 'Z Category' security cover of the Central Reserve Police Force to Opposition presidential candidate Yashwant Sinha, official sources said on Friday.
The CRPF has taken over the security of Sinha on Friday after the Union Home Ministry directed the CRPF's VIP security wing to ensure the protection of 84-year-old Yashwant Sinha. The armed personnel, about eight to ten working in shifts, will escort Sinha whenever he moves across the country, they said.
The moves come days after the CRPF accorded 'Z+' category armed security to NDA's presidential candidate Droupadi Murmu.
Yashwant Sinha is expected to file his nomination on June 27 following which he will travel across the country seeking votes in his favor for becoming the next President of India.
Sinha, who had quit the Bharatiya Janata Party in 2018, joined the TMC last year. He was later appointed as the party's vice-president.
The presidential election would be held on July 18 to elect a successor to the current President Ram Nath Kovind and the result would be out on July 21.
President Ram Nath Kovind's term will end on July 24.