20 years of Parliament attack: When terror struck Indias citadel of democracy

The deadly attack on Parliament by terrorist groups linked to Pakistan will be commemorated on Sunday, December 13th, after 19 years. The attack was dubbed “the most audacious, and also the most alarming, act of terrorism” by senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader LK Advani, who was then the home minister. 

On this day in 2001, a five-member suicide squad comprised of Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists attacked the Parliament House when the Lok Sabha was in session. Although the Houses were adjourned at the time of the attack, numerous politicians and personnel were present inside.

The assailants arrived in an Ambassador car and gained access due to a falsified government sticker. One of the staff members became concerned when the automobile moved into the Parliament grounds. As a result, the vehicle was forced to turn around and strike then-vice president Krishan Kant’s vehicle. 

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The gunmen then jumped down and opened fire, armed with AK-47s and grenades. The attack lasted around 30 minutes, and all five terrorists were killed outside the building. However, five Delhi Police officers, one CRPF women constable, and two security aides from the Parliament Watch and Ward division died keeping terrorists from entering Parliament House. Also killed were a gardener and a photojournalist.

BJP leader L K Advani said in the Lok Sabha that the attack “was executed jointly by Pakistan-based and supported terrorist outfits, namely, Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad. These two organisations are known to derive their support and patronage from Pak ISI.”

Four persons were apprehended and charged as the attack’s masterminds within days. The case against the four men – Mohammed Afzal Guru, Shaukat Hussain, Afsan Guru, and SAR Geelani – lasted nearly a decade, with the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court ultimately acquitting two of them and maintaining the death penalty for the other. 

The Delhi high court acquitted Geelani, a professor at Delhi University, in 2003 for “lack of evidence”, a verdict confirmed by the Supreme Court in 2005. Afsan Guru was also absolved of accusations, while Hussain was sentenced to prison. In 2013, Afzal Guru was hung.