Delhi court rejects bail pleas of two accused in 2023 Parliament security breach case

• Special court rejects second bail pleas of Manoranjan D and Sagar Sharma

• Court cites statutory restrictions under UAPA and seriousness of allegations

• Says parity with two co-accused granted bail by Delhi High Court does not apply

A Delhi court has rejected the regular bail pleas of two accused in the December 13, 2023 Parliament security breach case for the second time, citing the statutory restrictions under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the seriousness of the allegations against them.

In an order passed on Friday, Special Judge Kiran Bansal dismissed the applications filed by Manoranjan D and Sagar Sharma, who had sought bail citing prolonged incarceration and parity with two co-accused granted bail by the Delhi High Court.

The court said there were reasonable grounds to believe that the charges against the two accused were prima facie true, attracting the restrictions on bail under Section 43D(5) of the UAPA.

"There is a statutory bar under Section 43D(5) of the UA(P)A and the accused cannot be released on bail if there are reasonable grounds to believe that the accusations against the accused persons are prima facie true," the order said.

Rejecting the plea for parity, the court noted that the Delhi High Court had granted bail to Neelam Raoliya alias Neelam Azad and Mahesh Kumawat on July 2, 2025, after observing that Neelam had remained outside Parliament while Mahesh was not in Delhi on the day of the incident.

However, Manoranjan and Sharma had entered Parliament and jumped from the visitors' gallery into the Lok Sabha chamber, the court said. It noted that smoke canisters had been concealed in their shoes and that parliamentary proceedings were disrupted.

Examining the chargesheet and supplementary chargesheets, the court said the allegations were grave and serious, as the acts had disrupted parliamentary proceedings and threatened the sovereignty and integrity of India.

The judge also noted that the accused had allegedly chosen the anniversary of the 2001 Parliament attack to carry out the breach. The court further referred to allegations that they had erased data from their mobile phones and handed the devices to co-accused Lalit Jha for destruction.

Rejecting prolonged incarceration as a sufficient ground for relief, the court said bail could not be granted solely on the basis of delay in the proceedings.

It clarified that its observations would not affect the merits of the case.

The 2023 Parliament security breach

On December 13, 2023, two persons, Sagar Sharma and Manoranjan D, jumped into the Lok Sabha chamber from the visitors' gallery, released yellow smoke from canisters and raised slogans before being overpowered by MPs and parliamentary security personnel.

At around the same time, two other accused, Neelam Raolia and Amol Dhanraj Shinde, released coloured smoke from canisters outside Parliament and raised slogans of "tanashahi nahi chalegi".

Six people -- Manoranjan D, Sagar Sharma, Amol Dhanraj Shinde, Neelam Raolia, Lalit Jha and Mahesh Kumawat -- are accused in the case.