New Delhi: Several Members of Parliament slammed the BJP government over the security breach in Lok Sabha on Wednesday and said that the incident showed that even the MPs were not safe.
The lower House witnessed a major security breach on the 22nd anniversary of the 2001 Parliament attack as two men jumped down from the gallery and hurled gas-emitting objects into the House while shouting slogans.
Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP) MP Hanuman Beniwal, who along with other MPs caught the Lok Sabha intruder, said he was sitting on the second row and it was his turn to speak when suddenly a person was seen hanging from above, which created chaos.
"One person was shouting something and the other person was hanging towards the Parliament gallery, later he jumped down. There was chaos among the MPs. When some of them surrounded one of the intruders, another took out a canister from his shoe and sprayed smoke. It is surprising how a person can reach inside the Lok Sabha with a smoke canister, that too on the anniversary of the 2001 Parliament attack," the MP said.
He said that the government was careless about security and some MPs have "made it a business to make visitor passes". "They plan to get visitors as soon as they win the elections. Some MPs make 50 passes in their name. A review is necessary regarding the security of MPs," the RLP MP said. "Imagine if the intruders had poisonous gas in their hands, then who would take responsibility? What if MPs would have been killed or blinded? The Prime Minister and the Home Minister should reassure the country in this matter. Responsibility will have to be fixed, today is a dark day in the history of Parliament," he said.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Kalyan Banerjee also came down heavily on the Narendra Modi-led BJP government. Banerjee said that the MP who issued a visitor's pass to the accused should be detained and questioned. "This is a serious security lapse. Today's incident shows that there is no security even to the MPs, under the Narendra Modi government," Banerjee told ETV Bharat. "The incident shows that there is total security failure in the new Parliament building," he said.
The two men who barged into Lok Sabha were identified as Sagar Sharma and Manoranjan. Sharma had a visitor pass to the Parliament which was issued by Mysuru BJP MP Pratap Simha.
Speaking to ETV Bharat, Congress MP Abdul Khalek said, "22 years ago, the Parliament was attacked and even after 22 years, the Parliament is not safe. This is a huge failure of our security system, which is very unfortunate for the safety and security of the Parliament and the country as a whole."
"There should be a thorough investigation as to who is responsible for such an incident, and the culprit should be punished. A strict probe should be conducted against the BJP MP who issued the pass. I was in the lobby when the incident occurred. Some members caught them and handed them over to security. Also, anyone can jump from the visitors gallery in the new Parliament. So I think the visitor's gallery is not appropriately constructed," said Khalek.
Another Congress MP Manickam Tagore called the incident "shameful and shocking". "Today's incident in Lok Sabha is very sad and disturbing. It clearly shows that there is no security in Parliament. After building the new parliament, they said that modern security was being provided. But this attack has exposed their claims," Tagore said.
"We were shocked to see two persons jumping out of the Parliament audience hall, with smoke cans in their hands. After this incident, all the members of parliament had to run away. The security officials caught the men tactfully. 22 years ago, the Parliament attack took place when the BJP was in power, and today as well it is their government," he said.
Following the security breach, a high-level meeting took place inside Parliament where Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla was present. Delhi police commissioner, CRPF DG were also present in the meeting. Meanwhile, officials from the multi-agency security agency have started a thorough investigation into the incident.
NIA, CRPF, NDRF, Crime Branch of Delhi police started separate investigations. "From the initial probe, it is suspected that the accused sprayed smoke. Our team is investigating into the matter," said PK Tiwari, a senior official from NDRF. The incident has put the security agencies into a tizzy since the Parliament remains under three-layer security. CRPF, NDRF and Delhi police provide security inside and outside the Parliament.
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