Major security breach inside Lok Sabha. House adjourned till 2 pm

A major security breach has been reported in the Lok Sabha after two visitors seated in the public gallery jumped into the House's chamber and spread tear gas, as per multiple reports.

Ministers of Parliament (MPs) left the House immediately, and proceedings have been adjourned till 2 pm by BJP member Rajendra Agrawal, who was in the chair.

What Happened?

Speaking to media persons outside the Parliament, MP Arvind Sawant said two men jumped from the gallery into the chamber and then jumped from bench to bench to get ahead. He added that the men released an “unidentified, yellow colour gas that caused burning sensation in the nose".

Speaking to PTI, Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said the men were carrying tear gas canisters. "One person leapt over the benches of the Lok Sabha while another was seen dangling from the public gallery spraying some tear gas when Zero Hour was in progress," he added.

"This is certainly a security breach because today we observed the death anniversary of people who sacrificed their lives in the 2001 (Parliament attack)," Chowdhury said.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), 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."

Both the men have been apprehended inside the Parliament and have been taken away by security forces for interrogation, reports added. Meanwhile, the watch and ward staff have cordoned off the gallery, the Lok Sabha chamber, and the surrounding areas.

The last time, someone jumped in the chamber from the gallery was when the House passed a bill to create Jharkhand passed.

Besides the Parliament incident, two people were also detained by Delhi Police for protesting with coloured smoke in front of the Transport Bhavan. 

Notably, today (December 13) is the anniversary of the 2001 Parliament attack carried out by five armed attackers. Six Delhi Police personnel, two Parliament Security Service personnel, and a gardener were killed. All the assailants were killed by security forces.

India has blamed two Pakistan-based militant groups for the 2001 attacks – the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). the LeT however has denied involvement.