Parliament Security Breach - Accused modified shoes to hide colour bombs, say cops
The shocking breach of parliament that shocked the nation was a well-planned conspiracy that involved 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 that triggered alarm in the heart of India's democracy, according to investigators on Thursday.
On thursday, four people accused of the crime were remanded in police custody for seven days: Sagar Sharma and Manoranjan D, who walked past three layers of security before rappelling down from the visitors' gallery and spraying colored smoke inside the Lok Sabha, and Amol Shinde and Neelam Singh, who were arrested while shouting slogans outside Parliament. On thursday night, a fifth person, co-conspirator Lalit Jha, was apprehended.
Police said they were concentrating their efforts on Manoranjan, a 34-year-old engineering graduate from Mysuru who exploited family ties to obtain two visiting visas from local mp Pratap Simha. According to authorities, Manoranjan hosted the three male suspects in Mysuru in 2021-22 to "discuss social issues" and had also met Neelam a year earlier.
"He was very active on data-facebook and instagram and always motivated them to do something big like a protest at parliament," said the investigator, who did not want to be identified. "He told police that they wanted to get the attention of the prime minister so that the government may look into issues such as inflation and poverty."
On thursday, four people accused of the crime were remanded in police custody for seven days: Sagar Sharma and Manoranjan D, who walked past three layers of security before rappelling down from the visitors' gallery and spraying colored smoke inside the Lok Sabha, and Amol Shinde and Neelam Singh, who were arrested while shouting slogans outside Parliament. On thursday night, a fifth person, co-conspirator Lalit Jha, was apprehended.
Police said they were concentrating their efforts on Manoranjan, a 34-year-old engineering graduate from Mysuru who exploited family ties to obtain two visiting visas from local mp Pratap Simha. According to authorities, Manoranjan hosted the three male suspects in Mysuru in 2021-22 to "discuss social issues" and had also met Neelam a year earlier.
"He was very active on data-facebook and instagram and always motivated them to do something big like a protest at parliament," said the investigator, who did not want to be identified. "He told police that they wanted to get the attention of the prime minister so that the government may look into issues such as inflation and poverty."
A day after the brazen attack, which sparked outrage in parliament and raised concerns about lax security protocols, police combed through papers and interrogation transcripts to piece together an unlikely conspiracy hatched by an e-rickshaw driver in lucknow, the son of wage laborers in Latur, a government job aspirant in Jind, an engineering graduate in Mysuru, and a tutor from Kolkata.
"All five protestors had previously visited delhi to protest at parliament, but this did not take place because they were unable to obtain parliament entry passes for them." Manoranjan obtained a permit for himself in June-July of this year and attended parliament without making a disturbance. "It is obvious that Sagar Sharma, the other accused who entered parliament with Manoranjan, would not have brought two pairs of'special' shoes from lucknow if this protest had not been planned," added the investigator.
"All five protestors had previously visited delhi to protest at parliament, but this did not take place because they were unable to obtain parliament entry passes for them." Manoranjan obtained a permit for himself in June-July of this year and attended parliament without making a disturbance. "It is obvious that Sagar Sharma, the other accused who entered parliament with Manoranjan, would not have brought two pairs of'special' shoes from lucknow if this protest had not been planned," added the investigator.