Parliament security breach two more people detained for questioning

Parliament security breach two more people detained for questioning

Identified by their first names, Mahesh and Kailash were detained after Lalit Jha, 35, a resident of Kolkata, the fifth accused in the case described as a co-conspirator, surrendered on Thursday.

The Delhi Police’s Special Cell has detained two more people in connection with the Parliament security breach on Wednesday involving two intruders, who jumped into Lok Sabha from the visitors’ gallery and sprayed smoke in a major security breach. The intrusion on the anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attack on Parliament sparked questions about laxity in security.

The two identified by their first names, Mahesh and Kailash, were detained after Lalit Jha, 35, a resident of Kolkata, the fifth accused in the case described as a co-conspirator, surrendered to police late on Thursday.

A police officer said Mahesh accompanied Jha and that they were handed over to the Special Cell, which is investigating the case. He added that Jha was arrested while Mahesh was detained for questioning. Kailash’s role came forth during their questioning and he too was detained.

Police said Jha travelled to Rajasthan by bus, where he is suspected to have destroyed mobile phones before returning to Delhi. He claimed to have stayed with Mahesh in Rajasthan even as police were verifying his version.

Jha and Mahesh were associated through the Bhagat Singh Fan Club, a social media group the accused were part of.

Investigators cited preliminary questioning and said Mahesh also wanted to be a part of the “protest” in Parliament but could not make it. “Everything that is being told to police was being verified,” the officer said.

HT on Friday reported the breach was a well-planned conspiracy going back nearly a year with one of the intruders getting a cobbler in Lucknow to carve 2.5-inch deep cavities in the soles of two pairs of shoes to stuff canisters of yellow smoke he carried to Parliament.

Four of the accused arrested earlier in the case, Sagar Sharma and Manoranjan D, who cleared three layers of security before jumping from the visitors’ gallery and spraying coloured smoke inside the Lok Sabha, and Amol Shinde and Neelam Singh, who shouted slogans outside Parliament, were remanded to police custody for seven days on Thursday.

Police said they were focusing on the role of Manoranjan, 34, an engineering graduate from Mysuru who used his connections to get two visitor passes from local parliamentarian Pratap Simha.

Manoranjan hosted the three male accused in Mysuru in 2021-22 to “discuss social issues” and met Singh a year ago, police said. He told police that they wanted to get the attention of the Prime Minister so that the government could look into issues such as inflation and poverty.

HT reported the incursion on the anniversary of the 2001 Parliament attack was planned for December 14 but was brought forward after Manoranjan received the passes early.

Investigators said an e-rickshaw driver in Lucknow, the son of wage labourers in Latur, a government job aspirant in Jind, an engineering graduate in Mysuru, and a tutor from Kolkata stitched together the unlikely conspiracy.

The five accused visited Delhi earlier to protest at Parliament but could not get entry passes. In June-July, Manoranjan got a pass for himself and visited Parliament without creating any scene.