New Delhi, Dec 13 (IANS): Parliamentarians Friday paid homage to the martyrs of the brazen terror attack on the Parliament House here on Dec 13, 12 years ago.

Nine people were killed in the Dec 13, 2001, when five heavily-armed Pakistani terrorists drove into the parliament complex and opened fire. There were about 100 MPs, including then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, in the circular, colonnaded building at the time of the attack, but no minister or MP was harmed.

Vice President Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar and Congress president Sonia Gandhi paid their tributes.

Leaders of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley, and several other leaders joined them and offered floral tributes to the martyrs at a solemn ceremony here.

Bharatiya Janata party's leader Sushma Swaraj wrote on her twitter handle: "13 December - My respects to the martyrs who laid down their lives defending the parliament this day."

On Feb 9 this year, parliament attack convict Afzal Guru was hanged in Delhi's Tihar Jail.

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