Major security breach in Lok Sabha; 2 people who opened smoke cans nabbed (WATCH)
Two people stormed the Lok Sabha with gas-emitting objects on Wednesday, triggering major scare in the Lower House when it was in session. The incident comes on the 22nd anniversary of the deadly 2001 Parliament attack.
FollowIn a major security breach, two people, carrying coloured smoke canisters, jumped from the visitors' gallery and ran into the chamber on Wednesday. The footage showed one man leaping across desks to evade capture, while the second was in the visitors' gallery spraying smoke. The two people have been detained. Preliminary probe suggested that the canister was hidden in the shoes of the youth.
When the incident happened, the proceedings in the Lower House were underway. The House was adjourned soon after the incident. Security agencies have been asked to go through all CCTV footage. The footages are being checked and staff who were on duty are being questioned about how did the breach happen.
Speaking to the reporters about the incident, Congress' Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said, "Two young men jumped from the gallery and something was hurled by them from which gas was emitting. They were caught by MPs, they were brought out by security personnel. House was adjourned till 2 pm. This is certainly a security breach because today we observed the death anniversary of people who sacrificed their lives in 2001 (Parliament attack)..."
Congress MP Karti Chidambaram said, "Suddenly two young men around 20 years old jumped into the House from the visitor's gallery and had canisters in their hand. These canisters were emitting yellow smoke. One of them was attempting to run towards the Speaker's chair. They were shouting some slogans. The smoke could have been poisonous. This is a serious breach of security especially on 13th December, the day when Parliament was attacked in 2001."
In a post on X, Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi said, "Saw two young men unleash foul smelling yellow coloured gas from canisters inside Parliament gallery. MPs rushed to grab these men. One person was raising some slogans. This raises serious questions on another aspect of the new Parliament building- security."
Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Dimple Yadav said, "All those who come here - be it visitors or reporters - they don't carry tags. So, I think the government should pay attention to this. I think this is complete security lapse. Anything could have happened inside the Lok Sabha."
An official statement from the Parliament is yet awaited. Today marks 22 years since the Parliament was attacked in 2001 by terrorist groups linked to Pakistan, killing nine security personnel.
