Delhi’s Patiala House Court on Friday granted a seven-day custody of Lalit Jha, the alleged perpetrator in the Parliament security breach case, to the Police.
Lalit Jha was brought before the judge concerned at the Patiala House Court, where he was also furnished with legal aid counsel, Advocate Umakant Kataria.
While seeking a 15-day custody of Jha, the Delhi Police informed the court, “He is the mastermind. We require his custody to unravel the entire conspiracy and the main motive behind the incident. We need to travel and take him to different cities and places. We need custody to recover the mobile devices also.” However, the court opted for a seven-day police remand.
The security breach occurred on the anniversary of the 2001 Parliament terror attack. During Zero Hour, Sagar Sharma and Manoranjan D jumped into the Lok Sabha chamber from the public gallery, releasing yellow gas from canisters and shouting anti-establishment slogans before being subdued by MPs. In a separate incident outside, protestors Neelam (42) and Amol (25) demonstrated with similar gas canisters. All four were remanded to seven days in custody of the Delhi Police Special Cell on Thursday.
Last night, senior police officials, including two Deputy Commissioners of Police (DCP) and Additional Commissioners of Police, interrogated Lalit Jha. He narrated the entire incident during the interrogation. Sources reveal that preparations for the attack were underway for months. An entry pass was crucial for Parliament access, and Lalit had sought assistance from anyone who could arrange the pass to facilitate their entry.
From a hotel in Rajasthan, Lalit vigilantly monitored ongoing developments and police movements through news channels, according to sources.
To gather more details, the Special Cell of Delhi Police has constituted six teams that will visit locations associated with the accused in Lucknow, Mysore, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, and Haryana.
The investigation disclosed that two pairs of shoes were specially ordered in Lucknow, as the accused discovered that shoes are not scrutinised in Parliament, presenting an easy way to carry the smoke canister inside.
Meanwhile, the Special Cell plans to recreate the scene of Wednesday’s Parliament security breach by taking the accused to the Parliament complex on Saturday or Sunday.
This recreation aims to help the police understand how the accused entered the Parliament building with colour spray and executed their plan, as per sources from the Special Cell.