The state police headquarters has decided to review threats to MLAs and MLCs following complaints of discrimination in allotment of security guards to some representatives of people.

The move assumes significance in the wake of the recent hue and cry over “favouritism” in allotment of securitymen to the legislators.

BJP legislator from Shahpur Munni Devi had raised the issue in the Assembly on February 29. She alleged that some former MLAs were enjoying more security cover than the serving ones.

Additional director-general of police (Law and Order) S.K. Bhardwaj visited Muzaffarpur on Wednesday and spoke to the MLAs and MLCs in the presence of zonal inspector-general of police (IG) Gupteshwar Pandey, deputy inspector-general of police (IG) (Tirhut) Bacchu Singh Meena, district magistrate Santosh Kumar Mall and senior superintendent of police in-charge Vivek Kumar among others. The legislators had complained against the police’s alleged lethargic approach for tackling the threat to their lives and property following a spurt in rebel activities in the district and its adjoining areas.

Bhardwaj, after reviewing the arrangements, ordered deployment of four house guards to Veena Devi, the MLA from Gaighat and her husband, Dinesh Prasad Singh, who is an MLC. He assured Sahebganj MLA Raj Kumar Singh Raju and his Kudhani counterpart, Manoj Kushwaha, to arrange additional securitymen for them.

The two MLAs, who were stripped of AK-47 wielding security guards following a directive of the police headquarters in January this year, had also raised the issue of threat to their life, during the ongoing session of the Assembly. (The Telegraph had published a report “Big guns cut to size” on January 29, 2012).

Sources in the state police headquarters said senior police officials would visit the districts from where such complaints had been received. “If the security is found to be inadequate after review, more security personnel will be drafted for the VIPs,” said a senior police officer under the cover of anonymity.

Sources said Hulas Pandey (MLC) and his brother Narendra Kumar Pandey, alias Sunil Pandey, who is a JD(U) legislator from Sarari constituency in Bhojpur, had been allotted eight security guards each.