Tag: Pegasus snooping row

  • Pegasus row: SC refers to ‘Orwellian concern’; says every citizen ought to be protected against privacy violation

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court, which appointed an expert committee to inquire into Pegasus snooping row, Wednesday said its effort is to uphold the Constitutional aspirations and rule of law without being consumed in the “political rhetoric” even as it observed that the petitions filed in the matter raised Orwellian concern.

    Quoting English novelist George Orwell, a bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana said, “If you want to keep a secret, you must also hide it from yourself.”

    Petitions seeking independent probe into alleged snooping row raise an Orwellian concern, about the alleged possibility of utilising modern technology to hear what you hear, see what you see and to know what you do, the apex court said.

    “Orwellian” refers to a dystopian, totalitarian state which is destructive to the welfare of a free and open society.

    “In this context, this Court is called upon to examine an allegation of the use of such a technology, its utility, need and alleged abuse.

    We make it clear that our effort is to uphold the constitutional aspirations and rule of law, without allowing ourselves to be consumed in the political rhetoric.

    “This Court has always been conscious of not entering the political thicket. However, at the same time, it has never cowered from protecting all from the abuses of fundamental rights,” said the bench, also comprising Justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli.

    The further said: “We live in the era of information revolution, where the entire lives of individuals are stored in the cloud or in a digital dossier. We must recognize that while technology is a useful tool for improving the lives of the people, at the same time, it can also be used to breach that sacred private space of an individual.

    “Members of a civilised democratic society have a reasonable expectation of privacy. Privacy is not the singular concern of journalists or social activists. Every citizen of India ought to be protected against violations of privacy. It is this expectation which enables us to exercise our choices, liberties, and freedom”.

    The top court said historically, privacy rights have been ‘property centric’ rather than people centric and this approach was seen in both USA as well as England.

    “In 1604, in the historical Semayne’s case, it was famously held that ‘every man’s house is his castle’. This marked the beginning of the development of the law protecting people against unlawful warrants and searches,” the bench said.

    Quoting British statesman William Pitt, the Earl of Chatham, the bench said: “The poorest man may in his cottage bid defiance to all the force of the Crown. It may be frail — its roof may shake — the wind may blow through it — the storm may enter, the rain may enter — but the King of England cannot enter! — all his force dares not cross the threshold of the ruined tenement!” 

    Referring to ‘The Right to Privacy’ article written by Samuel Warren and Louis Brandeis in 1890, the bench said: “Recent inventions and business methods call attention to the next step which must be taken for the protection of the person, and for securing to the individual what Judge Cooley calls the right “to be let alone.

    “Numerous mechanical devices threaten to make good the prediction that “what is whispered in the closet shall be proclaimed from the house­tops.”

    The apex court said however that unlike the ‘property centric’ origin of privacy rights in England and under the Fourth Amendment in the Constitution of the United States of America, in India, privacy rights may be traced to the ‘right to life’ enshrined under Article 21 of the Constitution.

    “When this Court expounded on the meaning of “life” under Article 21, it did not restrict the same in a pedantic manner. An expanded meaning has been given to the right to life in India, which accepts that “life” does not refer to mere animal existence but encapsulates a certain assured quality,” the bench said.

  • SC to pronounce order on Wednesday on pleas seeking independent probe into Pegasus snooping matter

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court is scheduled to pronounce on Wednesday its verdict on a batch of pleas seeking independent probe into the Pegasus snooping matter.

    A bench comprising Chief Justice N V Ramana and Justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli had reserved order on September 13, saying it only wanted to know whether or not the Centre used the Pegasus spyware through illegal methods to allegedly snoop on citizens.

    Citing national security, the Centre had refused to file a detailed affidavit in the matter.

    The pleas are related to reports of alleged snooping by government agencies on eminent citizens, politicians and scribes by using Israeli firm NSO’s spyware Pegasus.

  • Congress welcomes setting up of technical expert committee on Pegasus, but seeks SC-monitored probe

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Congress Thursday said the Supreme Court’s oral directive to set up a technical expert committee to inquire into the Pegasus snooping row is a step in the right direction, but asserted a “full investigation” monitored by the apex court is the “simple solution”.

    “The Pegasus Spy scandal is not an issue to protect national security but an assault on national security and privacy by the Modi government,” Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said.

    “The solution is simple — A SC-monitored full investigation. SC observation of setting up a “technical committee” is a right step in this direction,” he said on Twitter.

    Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate also said that based on media reports, a probe into the matter will ensure that national security is not compromised.

    She said one should also understand that the people allegedly snooped upon were not just political opponents of the ruling party, but also those in constitutional positions.

    “The reality is that snooping was done on people who were in elected positions of power, which also compromises the Official Secrets Act and there was never a bigger compromise on national security than Pegasus,” she said.

    “We will only say that there has to be a full-fledged probe by the Supreme Court of India under its supervision…because anything less than that is not going to be satisfactory as far as national security is concerned,” Shrinate said.

    The Congress leader said the party welcomes the setting up of the technical expert, “but it has to be a part of a larger probe. And I hope it will be”.

    In a significant development, the Supreme Court Thursday observed orally that it will set up a technical expert committee to inquire into the Pegasus snooping matter and pass an interim order next week on a batch of pleas seeking an independent probe into the entire issue.

    The apex court’s observations on constituting the committee assume significance in view of the Centre’s statement that it would set up an expert panel on its own to look into the grievances of the alleged surveillance of certain eminent Indians by hacking their phones using Israeli firm NSO’s spyware, Pegasus.

    A bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana, which was to hear some other matter, addressed senior lawyer C U Singh, one of the counsels in the pleas, that the order will be pronounced next week.

  • Pegasus snooping row: SC to pronounce order on pleas seeking independent probe next week

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday said that it will pronounce its interim order next week on a batch of pleas seeking an independent probe into the Pegasus snooping matter.

    A bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana said the order, which was to be pronounced earlier, will now be delivered next week.

    The top court on September 13 had reserved its order, saying it only wanted to know whether or not the Centre used the Pegasus spyware through illegal methods to allegedly snoop on citizens.

    The Centre had stoutly refused to file an affidavit citing national security on pleas seeking an independent probe into the snooping row.

    The pleas seeking an independent probe are related to reports of alleged snooping by government agencies on eminent citizens, politicians and scribes by using Israeli firm NSO’s spyware Pegasus.

    An international media consortium has reported that over 300 verified Indian mobile phone numbers were on the list of potential targets for surveillance using Pegasus spyware.

  • Don’t wish to file affidavit on pleas seeking probe into Pegasus snooping row, Centre tells SC

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Centre told the Supreme Court on Monday that it does not wish to file a detailed affidavit on a batch of petitions seeking independent probe into the alleged Pegasus snooping row.

    The Centre told a bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana that it has ‘nothing to hide’ and that’s why the government has on its own said it will constitute a committee of domain experts to look into these allegations.

    Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the bench, also comprising Justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli, that whether a particular software is used or not by the government is not a matter for public discussion and making this information a part of an affidavit will not be in national interest.

    ​ALSO READ | Pegasus snooping row: Bengal assures SC that Lokur panel will not proceed for time being

    Mehta said the report of the committee of domain experts will be placed before the apex court.

    The top court told Mehta that it had already made clear that it did not want the government to disclose anything which compromises national security.

    The hearing in the matter is going on.

    On September 7, the apex court had granted more time to the Centre to decide on filing a further response on the petitions after Mehta had said that due to some difficulties he could not meet the officials concerned to take a decision on the filing of the second affidavit.

    ​ALSO READ | Pegasus row: Report finds NSO Group’s spyware used on Bahraini activists

    The Centre had earlier filed a limited affidavit in the top court saying the pleas seeking an independent probe into the Pegasus snooping allegations are based on “conjectures and surmises or on other unsubstantiated media reports or incomplete or uncorroborated material”.

    It had stated that the position on the issue has already been clarified in Parliament by Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.

    Peagsus hearing begins before the supreme court with the centre reiterating that it is not going to file a detailed affidavit on petitions seeking inquiry into alleged use of spyware Pegasus and suggests constitution of committee of experts to look into this @NewIndianXpress
    — kanupsarda (@sardakanu_TNIE) September 13, 2021
    With a view to dispelling any wrong narrative spread by certain vested interests and examining the issues raised, the government will constitute a committee of experts, it had said.

    The pleas are related to reports of alleged snooping by government agencies on eminent citizens, politicians and scribes by using Israeli firm NSO’s spyware Pegasus.

    An international media consortium has reported that over 300 verified Indian mobile phone numbers were on the list of potential targets for surveillance using Pegasus spyware.

  • Pegasus snooping row: Bengal assures SC that Lokur panel will not proceed for time being

    By ANI

    NEW DELHI: The West Bengal government on Wednesday assured the Supreme Court that a two-member Inquiry Commission headed by a former top court judge, Justice Madan B Lokur to investigate into allegation relating to Pegasus Spyware snooping case, will not go ahead with the inquiry till the court hears the bunch of pleas on the issue.

    A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India NV Ramana tagged the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) challenging the Commission of Inquiry by the West Bengal government with other pleas pending before the top court on Pegasus controversy and said that it will be taken up together next week.

    “Please maintain restraint as we are already hearing the Pegasus matter”, the Bench told Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi appearing for the West Bengal government.

    The top court said, “Aspresent issue is connected to other issues, in all fairness we expect you can wait. We will hear about the matter sometime next week. Those matters (pleas seeking inquiry on alleged used of Pegasus spyware by the government) are likely to have pan India impact…”

    The Bench said that next week it would pass a comprehensive order, in the meantime, if the state government started an inquiry, then it would have to pass an order.

    Singhvi said that he will convey it to the government and Commission and nothing would happen in one week or two weeks.

    “Nothing will happen in the meantime. Please don’t make an observation, that is all,” Singhvi said.

    Senior advocate Harish Salve appearing for petitioner NGO Global Village Foundation Public Charitable Trust told the Bench that there can not be two parallel inquiries.

    Meanwhile, the State government in its affidavit has called the Union government “non-committal and evasive” while justifying the setting up of a two-member Commission of Inquiry.

    The West Bengal said that the commission it constituted will “put into place effective countermeasures against any rogue foreign spyware”.

    The West Bengal government also questioned the motive behind the plea, claiming that the trustee and chairman of the NGO had close links with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and its affiliate, Swadeshi Jagran Manch.

    The Pegasus controversy is indeed a matter of public importance affecting public order and therefore, the state government had the jurisdiction to constitute the commission to restore public confidence in the people of West Bengal and to ensure that no unauthorised interception through rogue foreign spyware can occur in the state, added the affidavit.

    In the earlier hearing, the top court had refused to stay the proceedings of the committee.

    The PIL filed by the NGO sought direction to disband the two-member Commission of Inquiry headed by Justice Madan B Lokur and also comprising former Acting Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court, Justice (retired) Jyotirmay Bhattacharya by the State government to probe the allegations of snooping by Pegasus software developed by Israeli spyware firm NSO.

    It sought to stay on the proceedings of the Commission stating that proceedings before the committee should not go on when the issue is being examined at a pan-India level.

    There are several pleas pending before the apex court seeking a court-monitored probe into the reports of the government allegedly using Israeli software Pegasus to spy on politicians, activists, court staff, and journalists. It also issued notice to the government on the pleas.

    The Centre has apprised the top court that it has decided to constitute a Committee of Experts which will examine all the issues relating to the alleged Pegasus snooping issue.

    The Centre also denied all the allegations of snooping on journalists, politicians, activists and court staff and maintained the petitions are based on conjectures and there is no substance in the accusations.

    The top court had earlier observed that the allegations about the Central government allegedly using Israeli software Pegasus to spy on people “are serious if news reports are correct”.

    As many as eleven pleas were filed before the top court by senior journalists N Ram, and Sashi Kumar, Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas of Communist Marxist Party of India (Marxist) and advocate ML Sharma, former Union minister Yashwant Sinha, RSS ideologue KN Govindacharya.

    Journalist Paranjoy Guha Thakurta, SNM Abdi, Prem Shankar Jha, Rupesh Kumar Singh and Ipsa Shatakshi, who are reported to be on the potential list of snoop targets of Pegasus spyware, had also approached the top court along with The Editors Guild of India (EGI) among others.

    The pleas sought inquiry headed by a sitting or retired judge of the top court to investigate the alleged snooping.

  • Pegasus controversy: SC issues notice to Centre

    By Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued a pre-admission notice to the Central government on petitions seeking a court-monitored probe into the Pegasus snooping  row.A three-judge bench headed by CJI NV Ramana issued a notice after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta expressed inability to file a detailed affidavit revealing whether the government used the Peagsus software or not. So far, the bench had been hearing the matter without issuing any notice.

    Mehta argued against making this information public, saying it was not in public interest, as national security aspects are involved and he assured that the government is ready to make a disclosure before a committee of technical experts, which it proposes to set up. This committee will submit its report to the court.

    The judges told Mehta they do not want to compel him to divulge information that could potentially harm national security. “We would never ask you to make any such disclosure, irrespective of whether such a prayer is made or not. The question is that are individuals, civilians, person of eminence who suspect and allege snooping or hacking. In case of civilians also, rules permit (interception), but only subject to the permission of the competent authority,” said Justice Surya Kant.

    “We will issue a simple notice and let the competent authority under rules take a decision to what extent information is to be disclosed and we will see what is to be done,” the judge said. The bench will hear the matter after 10 days.

    CJI Ramana said the judges will deliberate on how to proceed. “We will consider what can be done. If a committee of experts needs to be made, or some other committee, we will do so,” the court told Mehta, who requested to let the government form the panel. “Even though rules permit an interception, that can be done only by the permission of the competent authority. What is the problem if that authority filed an affidavit before us?” the bench said.

    Solicitor General raises security concernSolicitor General Tushar Mehta told the bench that if things are divulged at public forum, terrorist organisations will take advantage of a public disclosure on which software is used for interceptions or surveillance to change their communication settings.

  • Pegasus row: SC issues notice to Centre, says govt need not disclose anything that compromises national security

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued a notice to the Centre on a batch of pleas seeking independent probe into the alleged Pegasus snooping matter, making it clear that it did not want the government to disclose anything which might compromise national security.

    A bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana sought the Centre’s response on the pleas and said it will take up the matter after 10 days and see what course should be adopted.

    The bench, also comprising Justices Surya Kant and Aniruddha Bose, told Solicitor General Tushar Mehta that the apex court does not want the government to disclose anything which may compromise national security.

    The top court said this after Mehta argued that divulging the information on affidavit, as sought by the petitioners, would involve aspects of national security.

    The court is hearing a batch of pleas, including the one filed by Editors Guild of India, seeking independent probe into the matter.

    They are related to reports of alleged snooping by government agencies on eminent citizens, politicians and scribes by using Israeli firm NSO’s spyware Pegasus.

    An international media consortium has reported that over 300 verified Indian mobile phone numbers were on the list of potential targets for surveillance using Pegasus spyware.

  • Petitions seeking probe based on ‘conjectures and surmises’: Govt to SC on Pegasus snooping row

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Centre on Monday told the Supreme Court that a batch of petitions seeking an independent probe into the Pegasus snooping allegations is based on “conjectures, surmises” and unsubstantiated media reports and a group of experts will examine all issues raised.

    In an affidavit filed before a bench of Chief Justice N V Ramana and Justices Surya Kant and Aniruddha Bose, the government said its position on the alleged Pegasus snooping has already been clarified in Parliament by IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.

    ALSO READ | Pegasus row: NCP asks Centre to probe if any foreign powers snooped on Indian judges, politicians

    “A bare perusal of the captioned petition and other connected petitions makes it clear that the same are based on conjectures and surmises or on other unsubstantiated media reports or incomplete or uncorroborated material,” the affidavit said.

    With a view to dispel any wrong narrative spread by certain vested interests and with an object of examining the issues raised, it said, the government will constitute a committee of experts.

    During the brief hearing, the bench said it will take up the matter at the end of board of the day’s business.

    On August 10, the top court had taken exception to “parallel proceedings and debates” on social media on the snooping row by some petitioners and said that there must be some discipline and they must have “some faith in the system”.

  • No transaction with NSO Group: Defence Ministry on the firm at the centre of Pegasus snooping row

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The defence ministry on Monday said it did not have any transaction with the NSO Group, the developer of military-grade spy software Pegasus that is in the eye of a huge political firestorm following the snooping controversy allegedly involving the programme.

    The brief written statement on the NSO Group came from Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhatt in response to a question in Rajya Sabha by CPI(M) member V Sivadasan.

    “Ministry of Defence has not had any transaction with NSO Group Technologies,” the minister said.

    Sivadasan, as part of a number of questions on expenditure by the defence ministry, also asked whether the government had carried out any transaction with the NSO Group Technologies.

    NSO Group, an Israeli surveillance software company, has been under increasing attack following allegations that its Pegasus phone spyware was used for surveillance on journalists, activists and political leaders in several countries including India.

    NSO has denied any wrongdoing.

    The opposition parties have been targeting the central government over the snooping row and disrupting proceedings in Parliament since it met on July 19 for the Monsoon session.

    The opposition parties have been demanding a discussion on the Pegasus issue in parliament, claiming it has national security implications.

    IT and Communications Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had dismissed media reports on the use of Pegasus software to snoop on Indians, saying the allegations levelled just ahead of the Monsoon session of Parliament were aimed at maligning Indian democracy.

    In a suo motu statement in Lok Sabha, Vaishnaw had said that with several checks and balances being in place, “any sort of illegal surveillance” by unauthorised persons is not possible in India.

    The controversy erupted after an investigation by a global media consortium based on leaked targeting data claimed evidence that the military-grade malware from the NSO Group was being used to spy on politicians, journalists, human rights activists and others.

    In his reply, Bhatt also said that an allocation of Rs 4,04,364 crore was made to the defence ministry in the budget estimate (BE) stage in 2018-19 and the expenditure made during that fiscal by the ministry was Rs 4,03,459 crore.

    The minister said that an outlay of Rs 4,31,010 crore was made at the BE stage in 2019-20 while expenditure against the allocation was Rs 4,51,902 crore.

    In 2020-21, the defence ministry incurred an expenditure of Rs 4,85,726 crore as against an allocation of Rs 4,71,378 crore at the BE stage, he said.

    The percentage of allocation to the defence ministry out of the total budget of the central government for 2018-19 was 16.56 percent while it was 15.47 percent in 2019-20 and 15.49 percent in 2020-21, according to the minister.

    Bhatt said an amount of Rs 45,705 crore was spent in 2018-19 on procurement from foreign sources while the figure for 2019-20 was 47,961.47 crore.

    The ministry spent Rs 53,118 crore in procurement from foreign countries in 2020-21.