FormerAssam Chief Minister and senior AGP leader Prafulla Kumar Mahanta on Sunday allegedthat his security was downgraded by the Centre due to his opposition to thecontentious Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019.

"My NationalSecurity Guard (NSG) cover was withdrawn for protesting against the CAA," saidMahanta, while addressing the media in Guwahati. He further alleged that Assam CM SarbanandaSonowal and AGP leaders pressurised the Centre to downgrade his NSG cover.

It maybe mentioned here that Mahanta's NSG commandos will be replaced by CRPF jawans."The government can take away all my security covers but the people of thestate will protect me," hoped Mahanta.

NSGcover was accorded to Mahanta in 1997 after ULFA made an abortive bid on hislife. Later, it was withdrawn in 2017 following which he moved the Gauhati HighCourt, which restored his security cover.