'Remove bulletproof glass or I won't speak': Ex-officer recalls PM Modi's demand on I-Day 2014

TOI News Desk / TIMESOFINDIA.COM / Aug 15, 2026, 18:03 IST

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PM Modi said, 'if this stays in front of me, I would not be able to address the citizens'," the officer recalled.

Former defence secretary RK Mathur has recalled how Prime Minister Narendra Modi insisted on removing the bulletproof glass barrier from the Red Fort before delivering his first Independence Day address as Prime Minister in 2014.Intelligence Bureau (IB) had briefed Modi about the security arrangements ahead of August 15. The officials had specifically discussed the bulletproof glass barrier placed in front of the Prime Minister.PM Modi for a briefing before August 15 because it was his first Independence Day where he would address the country from the ramparts of the Red Fort (as the Prime Minister)."

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