Twenty years ago today, on December 13, 2001, terrorists from Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed terror groups attacked the Indian Parliament.
At the time of the incursion, the Lok Sabha was in session, but the Houses were adjourned. However, several parliamentarians and government officials including at the time Home Minister LK Advani and Minister of State for Defence Harin Pathak were present inside the building.
The attackers arrived in a White Ambassador bearing fake stickers of the Home Ministry and Parliament itself.
It would not be wrong to say that at the time, the security system at Parliament was as stringent as it is today.
Carrying AK47 rifles, grenade launchers, pistols and grenades, the terrorists breached through security cordons deployed around Parliament complex. As they further drove the car inside, one of the staff members, Constable Kamlesh Kumari Yadav, became suspicious of their movement.
Yadav was the first security official to approach the terrorists' car and, realising something suspicious, ran back to her post to seal the gate no 1 where she was posted. With their cover effectively blown, the terrorists opened fire on Yadav and fired at her 11 times.
Yadav died on the spot, averting a suicide bomber among the terrorists to execute his plan. After killing Yadav, the terrorists moved forward, firing indiscriminately.
The attack lasted for about 30 minutes, and all five terrorists were killed by security forces, outside the building itself. However, nine persons, including eight security personnel, were killed in the attack.
Delhi Police officials stated that gunmen carried out the operation under the guidance of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency. The attack led to high tension between India and Pakistan and the security of Parliament was upgraded thereafter.
Not long after the event, four people - Mohammed Afzal Guru, Shaukat Hussain, Afsan Guru and SAR Geelani - were arrested as masterminds.
Geelani and Afsan were subsequently acquitted by the Delhi High court. Hussain served jail time and Afzal was hanged in 2013.
(With agency inputs)
