Parliament Smoke Attack: The colour smoke canister used by two protesters outside parliament
Four people have been detained for breach of parliament security after two of them released colour smoke inside the Lok Sabha, and the remaining two popped open a colour aerosol canister on a road outside the parliament building.
It is not known whether the canister used inside the Lok Sabha has been picked up and safely stored for analysis; however, a yellow canister that was used by the two protesters outside had been passed around by bystanders, including some reporters, raising serious questions over securing evidence.
It is a standard practice for law enforcement agencies to secure evidence immediately before it gets contaminated. The yellow canister, which was being passed around, should have been bagged and sent to the forensics team, sources have said.
Police sources said bystanders carrying "case property" is wrong. More such canisters have been found at a protest site near the parliament building, sources said. A forensics team has also reached the area, and a special police team has taken control of the site where the incident happened.
The accused who entered the Lok Sabha have been identified as Sagar Sharma and Manoranjan D, 35, a resident of Mysuru in Karnataka. The two who popped open the smoke canister outside have been identified as Neelam, 42, from Hisar in Haryana, and Amol Shinde, 25, from Latur in Maharashtra.
The guest pass of one of the attackers who breached the Lok Sabha's security shows it was issued by the office of BJP MP Pratap Simha.