2023 Indian Parliament breach
Location28°37′03″N 77°12′35″E / 28.6176°N 77.2098°E / 28.6176; 77.2098
Date13 December 2023
Around 1 PM (UTC+5:30)
WeaponSmoke bomb

On 13 December 2023, two intruders entered the Lok Sabha chamber from the public gallery. One of the individuals jumped onto the tables where the Members of Parliament (MPs) were seated and released a yellow-colored smoke canister. The other individual allegedly chanted slogans. This caused chaos and panic within the house, leading to the immediate adjournment of the session. Outside the building, two other individuals were arrested for doing similar activities.[1]

The breach later led to the suspension of 146 opposition parliament members on claims of causing disorder, 95 from the Lok Sabha, and 46 from the Rajya Sabha. The suspensions were later condemned by Human Rights Watch.[2]

Background

The incident occurred at about 1 PM in the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian Parliament, in the new parliament building. It happened on the 22nd anniversary of the 2001 Indian Parliament attack. Following the incident, four individuals were arrested. Two were detained from the Parliament complex, while the other two were apprehended near Transport Bhavan, which is adjacent to the Parliament. Investigations revealed that the smoke released by the individuals was not harmful and was intended to cause a sensation.[3][4]

Congress MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla from Amritsar snatched the smoke canister from one of the intruders and ran to the exit of the parliament to throw it away. He told The Indian Express that at the time, he believed the canister was a bomb. During the interview, he also told The Indian Express that: "A Punjabi never runs away from danger."[5]

The incident sparked widespread condemnation and raised serious questions about the security of the Parliament complex. Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla organised a meeting with the MPs to review the security arrangements and implement stricter measures to prevent such incidents from happening again.[3][4]

In a separate incident two protestors deployed smoke bombs and chanted slogans while being taken away from area near the parliament by Delhi Police.[6][7]

Aftermath

Both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were adjourned initially, but proceedings were resumed after a while. The speaker of the Lok Sabha banned the issuance of visitor passes and ordered a high-level probe into the incident with the assistance of Delhi Police. Central Industrial Security Force, the paramilitary agency responsible for the security of the parliament, has also started a separate investigation.[8][9][10]

Interrogation

During an interrogation, the mastermind of the breach, Lalit Jha admitted that he was supposed to hide in Rajasthan after the breach. He also said that co-accused Mahesh had even made arrangements for Jha at a guest house in Rajasthan using his own identity card. The attack was apparently being planned for months before its execution.[11]

Suspension of MPs over protests

On 14 December, 15 opposition MPs, 14 from the Lok Sabha (including S. R. Parthiban, whose suspension was later revoked) and 1 from Rajya Sabha[12] were suspended from the parliament session by vice president Jagdeep Dhankar for 'unruly conduct' after they chanted slogans demanding a statement from the home minister Amit Shah.[13]

The opposition MPs were demanding a statement by home minister Amit Shah in both the houses of parliament on the breach in security, and a detailed discussion on the same.[14]

One of the suspended MPs, S. R. Parthiban from the DMK, was not present in the house at the time of the session. His suspension was later revoked, and Parliamentary Affairs minister Pralhad Joshi said that the suspension of Parthiban was the result of a mistake on the part of the staff in identifying the member.[15] Joshi also said that the other 14 MPs were suspended for violating a new parliament rule that disallows placards.[16] Former finance minister and Congress MP P. Chidambaram dubbed the suspension of Parthiban as "comedy".[17] The Congress termed the suspension of opposition MPs as the "murder of democracy" and accused the BJP government of reducing parliament to a rubber stamp.[18] Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi also said that the breach was a direct fallout of unemployment and inflation.[19]

On 18 December, another 78 MPs (33 from the Lok Sabha and 45 from the Rajya Sabha) were suspended, taking the total tally of suspended MPs to 92 (46 from the Lok Sabha and 46 from the Rajya Sabha).[12]

Amid the new wave of suspensions on 18 December, Congress floor leader in the Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, who was also suspended, remarked that: "Today it is MPs, tomorrow it will be [the] common people’s turn".[20]

A further 49 MPs from Lok Sabha were suspended on 19 December, two on 20 December, and three on 21 December. taking the final count to 146, from which 100 are from the Lok Sabha, and 46 from the Rajya Sabha.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh claimed that the "complete purge" was being executed to pass "draconian bills" without any meaningful debate and let BJP MP Pratap Simha, who facilitated the intruders into the Lok Sabha, go scot-free.[21]

The opposition accused the BJP government of attacking democracy, Congress MP P. Chidambaram said that parliament "is going to resemble the North Korean assembly".[22][23]

Suspension of opposition MPs over protests following the breach
Date Lok Sabha Rajya Sabha Total
14 December 13[lower-alpha 1] 1 14[lower-alpha 1]
18 December 33 45 78
19 December 49 — 49
20 December 2 — 2
21 December 3 — 3
100 46 146

Pratap Simha's role

The opposition demanded strict action against BJP MP from Mysore, Pratap Simha, after reports surfaced that Simha issued visitors' passes to the intruders who breached the security in Lok Sabha. They compared it to the suspension of former Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, who lost her membership of parliament after her parliament login credentials were used by a Dubai-based businessman. Congress workers in Mysore also staged protests outside Simha's office there, as Karnataka state chief minister Siddaramaiah demanded a fair investigation into the incident.[24]

Probe findings

A preliminary inquiry into the breach revealed that the position of joint secretary (security), has been vacant for more than 45 days. It also revealed that there was a 40% shortage in staff, with only 230 personnel currently being employed. It was also noted that when the gas canisters were released in the Lok Sabha, the smoke alarms did not activate. A reduction of around ₹300,000,000 (US$3.6 million) in the annual budget allocated to the parliament compound was also observed.[25]

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 Does not include one MP whose suspension was revoked

References

  1. ↑ Brar, Kamaldeep Singh (14 December 2023). "Parliament security breach: A Punjabi never runs away from danger, says Amritsar MP who snatched smoke canister from attacker". The Indian Express. Amritsar: Express Publications. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  2. ↑ Mogul, Rhea (20 December 2023). "India suspends 141 lawmakers as ruling BJP accused of stifling opposition". CNN. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
  3. 1 2 "What are colour gas canisters, used during Lok Sabha security breach?". Hindustan Times. 13 December 2023. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
  4. 1 2 Rajesh, YP (13 December 2023). "Man jumps into Indian parliament, sets off smoke can in major security breach". Reuters. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  5. ↑ "Parliament security breach: A Punjabi never runs away from danger, says Amritsar MP who snatched smoke canister from attacker". The Indian Express. 13 December 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  6. ↑ Livemint (13 December 2023). "Lok Sabha security breach: Men leap across tables, spray smoke | 10 points". mint. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
  7. ↑ Haldiya, Vanshika. "Security breach in the Parliament on 22nd Attack Anniversary". BruTimes.
  8. ↑ "In Parliament Security Breach, Colour Gas Canisters Used: What Are They?". NDTV.com. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
  9. ↑ Livemint (13 December 2023). "Delhi Police detains protesters using colour smoke in front of Transport Bhawan". mint. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
  10. ↑ "Parliament Security Breach Highlights: Lok Sabha Secretary General Writes To Home Ministry, Seeks High-Level Probe". NDTV.com. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
  11. ↑ Livemint (16 December 2023). "What if accused could not enter the Parliament? There was 'Plan B' | Read here". mint. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
  12. 1 2 "92 MPs suspended from Parliament amid protests over security breach". The Siasat Daily. 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  13. ↑ "Parliament security breach: 15 India opposition MPs suspended for protests". 14 December 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  14. ↑ "Parliament: 45 MPs suspended from Rajya Sabha, 33 from Lok Sabha amid Congress's 'Opposition-less' Parliament charge". Hindustan Times. 18 December 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  15. ↑ "DMK MP not present in House, LS withdraws his suspension after govt letter". The Indian Express. 14 December 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  16. ↑ "Minister Pralhad Joshi explains expulsion of 13 MPs, says violated 'new Parliament' rule". Hindustan Times. 14 December 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  17. ↑ Staff, T. N. M. (14 December 2023). "DMK MP suspended from Parliament despite being absent calls it 'huge insult'". The News Minute. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  18. ↑ ""Murder Of Democracy": Congress After 14 Opposition MPs Suspended". NDTV.com. 14 December 2023. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
  19. ↑ "Parliament security breach a direct fallout of unemployment, inflation: Rahul Gandhi". Deccan Chronicle. 16 December 2023. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
  20. ↑ "Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury: 'Today it is MPs, tomorrow it will be common people's turn'". The Indian Express. 18 December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  21. ↑ "49 more Oppn MPs suspended from Lok Sabha; Congress says 'Namocracy in all its tyranny'". Hindustan Times. 19 December 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  22. ↑ Ellis-Petersen, Hannah (19 December 2023). "Indian government accused of attack on democracy as 141 MPs suspended". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
  23. ↑ "Parliament winter session: India opposition fury as 141 MPs suspended". 19 December 2023. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
  24. ↑ "Opposition tightens the screws on BJP MP Pratap Simha for Lok Sabha trespass". Hindustan Times. 13 December 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  25. ↑ "Parliament breach: Security head's post vacant for over 45 days, 40% staff shortage at other levels". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
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