Parliamentarians pay tribute to victims of 2001 Parliament attack

NEW DELHI: Vice-President and

Rajya Sabha

chairman M Venkaiah Naidu, and Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla led the parliamentarians in paying

tributes

to those killed in the 2001 Parliament attack at a sombre ceremony here on Monday.

At the ceremony held in the

Parliament

House complex, Naidu and Birla paid floral tributes to the martyrs. Rajya Sabha deputy chairman Harivansh, defence minister Rajnath Singh, Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Union ministers Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and Pralhad Joshi were among those who paid tributes at the photographs of those who died in the attack.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah could not attend the ceremony due to prior engagements.

Twenty years ago on December 13, terrorists of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) attacked the Parliament complex and opened fire, killing nine people.

The victims included five Delhi police personnel, a woman Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) trooper, two Parliament watch and ward staff and a gardener. A journalist who was injured died later. All five terrorists were shot dead.

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