News Analysis India

Tag: Snooping row

  • BJP says Pegasus row ‘manufactured’ matter; ‘anti-national’ to not discuss pandemic in Parliament

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI:  Asserting that preventing a possible third wave of COVID-19 is the biggest issue now, the BJP hit out at opposition parties on Wednesday for disrupting Parliament proceedings over “manufactured” matters like the Pegasus snooping and claimed it was “anti-national” to not discuss the pandemic in both the Houses.

    The BJP also made light of the unity among opposition parties against the Narendra Modi government, saying they were united earlier too and the main motivation of these parties, from the Congress to several regional ones, was to protect their “family interests”.

    On the other hand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi remains committed to the nation’s development, it said.

    After Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said the opposition was united in demanding a discussion in Parliament on the suspected snooping, which he called an “anti-national” work, BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra hit back, saying what is “anti-national” is elected representatives not discussing an issue which has impacted the country and the world.

    “Anyone who tries to prevent such a debate is striking a blow to the country… It is anti-national to not discuss the issue on the floor of Parliament,” Patra told reporters, attacking rivals.

    Opposition parties have stalled Parliament over a host of issues with the Pegasus row being at the centre of their protests.

    The biggest issue now is how to prevent the third wave of Covid-19 and the measures like vaccination, Patra added.

    Claiming that the Pegasus row is a “manufactured” issue, he alleged the opposition parties, such as the Congress and the Trinamool Congress, were trying to “weaponise” a “non-existent” issue to stall Parliament.

    The BJP leader said if Gandhi thinks that his mobile was targeted by the Pegasus spyware, then he should go to a police station and lodge a complaint.

    Accusing the opposition parties of “suppressing” people’s voice, he said they had been demanding a special session of Parliament to discuss the COVID-19 pandemic but have been now stalling it when a regular session has begun.

    To a question about opposition parties joining hands against the government over the Pegasus row, Patra noted they had united earlier too and referred to major anti-BJP leaders posing together after the Congress-JD(S) alliance formed the government in Karnataka in 2018 and the Congress and Samajwadi Party fighting the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls together in 2017.

    Be it the Congress, Shiv Sena or the Samajwadi Party, their intention is not India’s development but to save their family interests, he alleged.

    Modi does not come from a political family, and he remains committed to the nation’s development, Patra added.

    Gandhi on Wednesday said the Opposition was united in demanding a discussion on the Pegasus snooping row in Parliament in the presence of the prime minister or the home minister.

    He rejected the government’s charges over the disruption of Parliament and said the Opposition was only fulfilling its responsibility.

    The Congress also attacked the government over the Pegasus snooping row, accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit of “hitting the soul of India’s democracy”.

  • Parliamentary panel meeting to question govt officials on Pegasus postponed due to lack of quorum

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: A parliamentary panel meeting that was set to question government officials on Wednesday on the Pegasus spyware issue was postponed due to lack of quorum.

    A number of members of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information and Technology, chaired by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, sat in Parliament to discuss ‘Citizens’ safety and date protection’.

    However, BJP members of the panel who were present in the meeting room didn’t sign the attendance register in protest leading to a lack of quorum required for holding the meeting.

    The panel’s chair Tharoor had said the panel members will question officials from the Information and Technology Ministry and the Home Ministry who will depose before it on the Pegasus issue.

    BJP members opposed this alleging that when the Congress is not allowing discussion on this issue in Parliament then it can’t be discussed in the committee meeting.

    “BJP members come to the IT Committee and refuse to sign the attendance register to deny a quorum. Further, all the witnesses called from MiEIT and MHA wrote in excuses and didn’t appear as called to testify.

    It’s very clear that Pegasus is a no go area for this government,” the Congress’ Karti Chidambaram, who is a member of the panel, said on Twitter.

    Tharoor on Tuesday said the parliamentary panel on information technology will question government officials on allegations relating to suspected phone tapping of politicians, journalists and others using Pegasus spyware, while asserting that it was the “most important issue” for many members.

    Since the beginning of the monsoon session on July 19, both Houses have seen repeated disruptions as opposition parties have been demanding a Supreme Court-monitored judicial probe in this matter.

    The 32-member Parliamentary Standing Committee on IT was scheduled to meet on Wednesday, for which the listed agenda was — Citizens’ data security and privacy — according to a notification by Lok Sabha Secretariat.

    The panel, which has the maximum members from the ruling BJP, had summoned officials from the Ministry of Electronics, Information and Technology and the Ministry of Home Affairs.

    An international media consortium has reported that over 300 verified Indian mobile phone numbers were on a list of potential targets for surveillance using Israeli firm NSO’s Pegasus spyware.

    Opposition leaders including Rahul Gandhi, two union ministers — Prahlad Singh Patel and Railways and IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, businessman Anil Ambani, a former CBI chief, and at least 40 journalists are on the list on the leaked database of NSO.

    It is, however, not established that all the phones were hacked.

  • ‘United’ Opposition wants Parliament to discuss Pegasus row, Rahul rejects disruption charges

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The opposition on Wednesday hardened its stand on the Pegasus spyware issue with 14 parties unitedly demanding a debate in Parliament in the presence of the prime minister or the home minister and a Supreme Court-monitored probe into the matter.

    Earlier in the day, leaders of various opposition parties met and decided to submit similar adjournment notices on the matter.

    Congress leader Rahul Gandhi attended the meeting of 14 opposition parties.

    “The opposition is united for a discussion on the Pegasus issue… We are not going anywhere till it is discussed in Parliament,” Gandhi told reporters in the presence of leaders of 13 other opposition parties.

    ALSO READ | Congress MPs throw papers, torn placards at Chair in Lok Sabha

    He also rejected the government’s charges over the disruption of Parliament and said the opposition was only fulfilling its responsibility.

    Gandhi attacked the government over the Pegasus spyware row, accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah of “hitting the soul of India’s democracy by snooping upon its institutions”.

    The voice of the opposition is being suppressed in Parliament, he alleged.

    “We just have one question. Has the Government of India bought Pegasus, yes or no? Did the government use Pegasus weapon on its own people, yes or no? That is all we wish to know,” he told reporters at Vijay Chowk.

    Gandhi also said the Pegasus spyware row “for us, is an issue of nationalism, treason”.

    “This is not a matter of privacy. For me, it is an anti-national work.” Accusing PM Modi of using Pegasus spyware against the people of India, Gandhi said, “This weapon has been used against India.”

    “It should be used against terrorists. We are asking the prime minister and the home minister why did you use it against democratic institutions? What has Indian democracy done that you have used the weapon against democracy?” he posed.

    The government has been rejecting all opposition charges over the issue.

    Rahul Gandhi said the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha are places “where we have to speak and everyone is united on a discussion on Pegasus”.

    “The government is refusing to allow us a discussion. Obviously, the government has done something wrong, something dangerous for the country. That is the issue.”

    “We want a discussion in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha where either the prime minister, who has ordered the action, or the home minister, who is a party to ordering that action, because no one else can do it, has to be present.

    Pegasus is a weapon sold by one country to another,” Gandhi said.

    ALSO READ | Opposition damaged dignity of Parliament, says BJP after ruckus in Lok Sabha 

    The former Congress chief said people need to understand that if the issue of Pegasus spyware is not discussed now, then the matter would be over.

    “The prime minister and the home minister have assaulted the democratic spirit of India. That is why we are seeking Pegasus discussion and without that, we will not go anywhere,” Gandhi said.

    DMK’s T R Baalu said the government has given an impression that the opposition parties are against holding discussions in Parliament.

    “It’s not so. We wanted a discussion from day one. Every day, we are giving notices but the government is not coming forward for a discussion…It is a matter of great concern for democracy. Pegasus matter has to be taken very seriously. Like-minded people should come together to see that the matter is discussed,” he said.

    Shiv Sena’s Sanjay Raut alleged that “the government has indulged in backstabbing and attacked us with this weapon”.

    Ram Gopal Yadav of the Samajwadi Party said the government’s allegation that the opposition is running away from a discussion is “false propaganda”.

    “No institution has been left out of this snooping and the truth will not come till a Supreme Court-monitored probe is conducted.

    The corruption in the Rafale deal is linked to this snooping issue,” said Sanjay Singh of the AAP.

    NCP’s Supriya Sule said the opposition parties were united in their demand for the discussion in Parliament on the snooping row.

    An international media consortium has reported that over 300 verified mobile phone numbers, including of two ministers, over 40 journalists, three opposition leaders and one sitting judge besides scores of businesspersons and activists in India could have been targeted for hacking through the spyware.

  • Pegasus row: Congress MPs throw papers, torn placards at Chair in Lok Sabha

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Lok Sabha on Wednesday witnessed unruly scenes when some Congress members threw papers and torn placards at the Chair and Treasury benches.

    Amid protest by opposition members over the Pegasus spying row and farmers’ issue, the House was adjourned thrice with the first adjournment around 12:10 pm till 12.30 and again till 2 PM and for the third time till 2:30 pm.

    Opposition members trooped into the Well of the House, raising slogans and holding placards against the government over the Pegasus and farmers’ issues.

    Speaker Om Birla continued with the Question Hour despite disruptions.

    This was for the first time that Lok Sabha completed the Question Hour in the Monsoon session which began on July 19.

    The House has witnessed repeated disruptions and adjournments since the beginning of the session.

    As members from the Congress, Trinamool Congress and other parties continued with the sloganeering, Birla was seen going through a book on House procedures. Soon after the Question Hour ended, Speaker Birla left the House and Rajendra Agrawal took over.

    When papers were being laid, Congress members Gurjeet Aujala, TN Prathapan, Hibi Eden and some others threw business papers of the day, some torn papers as well as placards at the Chair. A piece of the torn placard landed in the press gallery just above the Speaker’s podium.

    However, Agrawal continued with the proceedings. The members repeatedly threw papers at the Chair and later towards the Treasury benches.

    One of the papers landed near the seat of Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi.

    The Chair then adjourned the proceedings till 12:30 pm. When the House reassembled at 12:30 pm, the din continued and Agrawal adjourned Lok Sabha proceedings till 2 pm.

    As the protests continued, the House was again adjourned till 2:30 pm.

  • ‘You are snooping on everyone’: Mallikarjun Kharge demands discussion on Pegasus in Parliament

    By ANI
    NEW DELHI: Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday reiterated the Opposition’s demand for a discussion on the issue of alleged snooping using Pegasus spyware and said that the Central government does not want to go by the rules of the Constitution.

    Speaking to reporters here, he said that the Opposition leaders have decided to raise this issue.

    “They don’t want to go by the rules of the Constitution. You (central government) are snooping on everyone including army officials, journalists and election commissioners. I am glad that all party leaders have decided to raise this issue together,”

    “We want to have a discussion (on Pegasus snooping issue) within the law and order. Earlier they agreed on the discussion on the COVID-19 crisis but when we started with a discussion, they just gave a statement rather than having a discussion,” he said.

    Earlier in the day, Congress MP KC Venugopal gave notice under rule 267 in Rajya Sabha for suspension of business for the day to have a discussion in the presence of the Prime Minister or Home Minister on the Pegasus Project issue.

    The names of several Opposition leaders including Rahul Gandhi and 40 Indian journalists appeared on the leaked list of potential targets for surveillance by an unidentified agency using Pegasus spyware, according to reports published in The Wire.

    Speaking on Lok Sabha on June 19, the first day of the Monsoon session, Union Electronics and Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had said that it is an attempt to malign Indian democracy and its well-established institutions.

    He had said that in the past too, similar claims were made regarding the use of Pegasus on WhatsApp and those reports too had no factual basis and were denied by all parties.

    The Minister also asserted that any form of illegal surveillance isn’t possible with “checks and balances in our laws and robust institutions.” 

  • Lok Sabha adjourned again amid disruptions by Opposition over Pegasus row, farmers protest

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Proceedings of Lok Sabha were adjourned till 2:45 PM on Monday after Opposition members raised slogans and placards on the Pegasus snooping row and the farmers’ issue.

    The House ran for a few minutes as papers were laid on the table and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman introduced the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill, 2021.

    With the Opposition MPs raising slogans against the government, Kirit Solanki, who was chairing the proceedings, asked them to return to their seats and allow the House to function. However, with the protesting MPs not relenting, he adjourned the proceedings till 2:45 PM.

    Earlier in the day, as soon as the House met, Speaker Om Birla paid tributes to the armed forces personnel for their valour and sacrifice during the 1999 Kargil War.

    On the 22nd anniversary of ‘Operation Vijay’, mounted to flush out Pakistani troops from the heights of Kargil, Speaker Birla also expressed his gratitude to the family members of the heroes of the Kargil War.

    Members observed silence for those who made the supreme sacrifice. He also congratulated Mirabai Chanu for winning a silver in Tokyo Olympics.

    Soon thereafter, opposition members trooped into the Well raising slogans, disrupting the proceedings.

    While the Pegasus snooping row remained the dominant issue with the Opposition members, they also raised slogans and displayed placards in support of agitating farmers.

    Some opposition members demanded the presence of the prime minister in the House and raised slogans such as “Modi sarkar jawab do” (Modi government please answer) on the Pegasus issue.

    “The government wants to give a reply. If you want a reply, please go back to your seats … people choose you to raise their issues. You are raising slogans … this hurts the dignity of the House,” Speaker Birla said.

    He had then adjourned the proceedings till 2 PM.

  • Rajya Sabha MP moves SC for snooping probe

    By Express News Service
    NEW DELHI: CPI (M) Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas moved the Supreme Court seeking a court-monitored investigation in the alleged Pegasus snooping case. 

    Brittas, in his public interest litigation (PIL), has said that despite the “very serious nature of the allegations,” the Union government has not launched a probe but “made only a hopeful hope that the time-tested processes in our country are well-established to ensure that unauthorised surveillance does not occur.”

    The CPI (M) lawmaker said that the government has neither denied nor admitted the snooping by the spyware. He has also said that the allegations lead to two inferences — either snooping was done by the Indian government or by a foreign agency. 

    Brittas expressed concern that the list of those who were potential targets in India includes opposition politicians, journalists, a former Election Commissioner, and the staffer of the former SC judge accused of sexual harassment. 

    “As the interceptions are said to be done in the gadgets of judges and Supreme Court staffer, there is a strong interference with the administration of justice. This is unprecedented and shocking to the conscience of the judicial system. The aspect of interception in the phones of former EC member shows that fundamentals of democracy and free and fair elections are also shaken,” he said.

    The MP from Kerala claimed that if Pegasus spyware was used in an unauthorised manner, that is in violation of fundamental rights under Articles 19(1)(a) and 21 and also as a slap on the face of the right to privacy upheld by the Court in the (2017) Puttaswamy case. 

  • Assam Congress demands Supreme Court-monitored probe into snooping row 

    By PTI
    GUWAHATI: A delegation of the Congress’s Assam unit, led by Rajya Sabha MP Ripun Bora, on Saturday submitted a memorandum to Governor Jagadish Mukhi, demanding a Supreme Court-monitored judicial probe over the allegation of snooping.

    The memorandum, addressed to President Ram Nath Kovind, was submitted to Mukhi at the Raj Bhavan here.

    “It is very clear that the Pegasus spyware was used by the BJP government against the opposition for their political gain,” Bora said.

    “This illegal surveillance using the spyware against the opposition leaders, constitutional authorities, journalists and others is an attack on Indian democracy and violation of right to privacy,” he added.

    The Congress demands a Supreme Court-monitored judicial inquiry to find out the role of government officials involved, Bora said.

    He also demanded action against all such officials found involved in the illegal surveillance.

    The Congress also demanded the resignation of Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the issue

  • Pegasus snooping story ‘concocted, fabricated, evidence-less’: BJP 

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The BJP on Thursday claimed that the story on the alleged snooping through Israeli spyware Pegasus is “concocted, fabricated and evidence-less” and that the news reports based on it call for “defamation”.

    Union minister and BJP leader Meenakshi Lekhi cited reports to claim that Amnesty International, the human rights group associated with Pegasus Project, has denied the existence of a list of potential targets of the alleged snooping.

    Addressing a press conference at the BJP headquarters here, she alleged that the “fake” list is like a collection of mobile numbers drawn from yellow pages and those have been used for “yellow journalism”.

    She was referring to news reports about the suspected snooping of people, including politicians and journalists, in India and several countries.

    Amnesty International, however, said in a statement that it “categorically stands” by the findings of the Pegasus Project and asserted that the data is irrefutably linked to potential targets of Israel-based NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware.

    The comments by Amnesty International came after some media reports quoting a few Israeli journalists said that the human rights group has claimed that it never said that the recently leaked phone numbers were specifically a list of numbers targeted by Pegasus spyware.

    ALSO READ | TMC’s Shantanu Sen snatches Pegasus statement from minister, tears it in Rajya Sabha 

    Lekhi told reporters that 10 countries have been named as places where this spyware was used and hit out at opposition parties, including the Congress and TMC, suggesting that rival parties other countries have not behaved the way they have in India.

    Opposition parties have stalled proceedings in Parliament, alleging the Modi government’s involvement in the alleged snooping, following reports that nearly 300 mobile phone numbers including of journalists, activists, opposition leaders and even two ministers from India figured in this list of potential snooping targets by NSO which sells its Pegasus spyware only to “vetted” governments and government agencies.

    She claimed, “This is not a story. This is a non-starter across the globe because based on a concocted, fabricated, evidence-less story, nobody does story. Because that story itself calls for forgery and defamation. Leaked data is an offence and that leads to further complications for people who base their stories on leaked data. It only happens in India.”

    “The published story is based on a list of numbers available in any directory. Second, Amnesty International has denied this. The company (NSO) which manufactures Pegasus has said that these claims are uncorroborated and do not tally with their customer base,” she said.

    Claiming that the Pegasus row is linked to the report of a parliamentary committee, which was headed by her and examined the Personal Data Protection Bill, she said it has been submitted to the Lok Sabha Speaker and is ready to be adopted by Parliament.

    “Data protection is going to become the law of the and. This is directly related to that. This is to undermine Indian institutions that such kinds of stories are being floated,” she said.

    ALSO READ | ‘Worse than the Watergate scandal: Mamata Banerjee on Pegasus snooping row

    NSO, the Israeli firm behind the spyware, has denied such a list, Amnesty International has “denied” this and yet opposition is disrupting Parliament, she said, claiming that such a narrative is built repeatedly to damage India.

    The government is creating a “new ecosystem” to secure the data and rights of Indians, and the row is meant to damage it, she added.

    “These kinds of stories are floated to undermine Indian institutions and stop data protection that is set to become the law of the land. This is to desensitize the public about the credibility of the structures and to malign the image of our country,” Lekhi alleged.

    Asked about the opposition’s query if the government has used the spyware, she said any such security information is classified as the government has to deal with terrorists and Maoists.

    “I cannot tell you about what software I am working with. It will amount to assisting terrorists. The Congress should first clarify if it is with terrorists,” she said.

    Asked if the previous government might have bought it, she said these things are “beyond her pay grade”.

    The onus to prove is on those who have created such a list, she said in reply to another question.

    The BJP leader also condemned the opposition for snatching papers from Communications and Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw in Rajya Sabha and tearing them when he was about to make a statement on the alleged snooping row.

    The Congress and the TMC have “stooped” to a new low, she said.

  • TMC MP accuses Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri of abusing him in Rajya Sabha 

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Shantanu Sen on Thursday alleged that Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri abused him in the Rajya Sabha and was on the verge of physically assaulting him before he was rescued by colleagues.

    Sen, who snatched papers from Communications and Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw in the Rajya Sabha and tore them as he was making a statement on the snooping issue, claimed that Puri even rudely gesticulated at him.

    Puri has so far not reacted on the issue.

    “The union minister (Puri) threatened and abused me. He was about to assault me when my other colleagues came to my rescue,” alleged Sen at a press conference.

    Narrating the sequence of events as it unfolded in the Rajya Sabha, TMC Chief Whip Sukhendu Sekhar Ray alleged that the Union communications and information technology minister’s statement was full of lies.

    He said minutes after Sen snatched the paper from the minister’s hands, Vaishnaw was handed over another copy and he continued to read.

    Soon after, the House was adjourned but not before the statement was tabled and considered as read.

    “The minister’s statement was full of contradictions and white lies. So one of our members snatched and tore it,” TMC Chief Whip Sukhendu Sekhar Ray said.

    The TMC alleged that after the House was adjourned and the live transmission was stopped, Union Minister Puri gesticulated at Sen ordering him to approach him.

    “I was gheraoed by the BJP MPs,” Sen alleged.

    FULL REPORT | TMC’s Shantanu Sen snatches Pegasus statement from minister, tears it in Rajya Sabha 

    Union Minister Meenakshi Lekhi condemned the conduct of opposition members in the Rajya Sabha and said it was a “new low” in India’s parliamentary democracy.

    Meanwhile, the TMC maintained that it would continue to obstruct Parliament proceedings till the government agrees to a “structured discussion” on the issue of snooping using Israeli spyware Pegasus.

    TMC’s Parliamentary party leader Derek O’Brien said not the Union IT minister, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi should reply to the opposition’s questions.

    “Our straightforward question is, did you or did you not use the Pegasus spyware? We will not allow them to sweep the issue under the carpet,” he said.

    TMC Chairperson and West Bengal Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee is expected to be in Delhi by the evening of July 26 and is scheduled to meet opposition leaders.