Unemployment, Rising Prices Behind Parliament Security Breach, Says Congress' Rahul Gandhi

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday attributed rising prices and unemployment behind the December 13 Parliament security breach.

Speaking to reporters after a poll preparedness meeting with leaders of the Congress' Gujarat unit in New Delhi, Gandhi said the security breach happened in Parliament but youngsters are not getting jobs due to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's policies. "There has been a security breach in Parliament. But why did it happen?" he asked.

"The biggest issue in the country is that of unemployment, which is boiling all over the country. The country's youth are not getting employment due to the policies of Modi ji," he said. In a major security breach on the anniversary of the 2001 Parliament terror attack on Wednesday, two men jumped into the Lok Sabha chamber from the public gallery during Zero Hour, released yellow smoke from canisters and shouted slogans, before being overpowered by the MPs.

"The breach has happened (in Parliament) but the reason behind it is unemployment and price rise," Gandhi also said. Two men -- Sagar Sharma and Manoranjan D -- had jumped into the Lok Sabha's chamber. Around the same time, two others -- Amol Shinde and Neelam Devi -- released coloured smoke from canisters while shouting "tanashahi nahi chalegi" outside the Parliament premises.

Lalit Jha, the fifth accused, allegedly circulated videos of the protest outside the complex on social media. All five have been arrested. The opposition has been seeking answers from the government on the security breach and have demanded a statement from Union Home Minister Amit Shah on the issue in Parliament. They have also been disrupting proceedings in both Houses to press for the demand.