On February 23, 1981, Pujadas was in Spain's Congress of Deputies in Madrid when a military group of 200 of the Guardia Civil attempted a coup d'état by storming into the building and locking themselves in with virtually the entire political leadership of the country. A burst of gunfire from submachine guns wounded some visitors in the upper gallery. Shots were heard live over Spanish radio which was broadcasting coverage of the parliamentary vote. The attackers, lead by Franco loyalist Lt. Colonel Antonio Tejero, held ministers and deputies at gunpoint and forced them to lie on the floor while waiting for army generals outside to bring down the democratic government. Pujadas was one of 350 members of parliament held hostage for about 17 hours. The coup attempt ended when King Juan Carlos, the head of state for Spain's then five year old democracy, denounced the attempt in a nationally televised address. The ministers and deputies emerged one by one from their all night ordeal in the Parliament building shouting "Long Live Freedom".