Pegasus espionage case: On the denial of the affidavit of the Center, the SC said – in the name of national security, you cannot turn away, the espionage of journalists and celebrities is serious

On Monday, the central government refused to file a reply in the Supreme Court on the Pegasus espionage scandal. Angered by this response of the government, the Supreme Court said that we had given the government an opportunity to file an affidavit in the last hearing, but what can we do now, we have to order. The Supreme Court said that journalists and celebrities have complained of espionage and this is a serious matter.

Hearing on Pegasus went on like this today…

Center: Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the court- The Center does not want to file its detailed affidavit in the petitions seeking an independent probe into the Pegasus espionage case. We have nothing to hide. That is why we had said ourselves that we would set up a panel of experts. Whether a particular software was used or not is not a matter of public disclosure. The report of the Expert Committee will be submitted to the Supreme Court.

Supreme court: Chief Justice of India NV Ramana said- Last time we wanted an answer and that is why we gave you time. Now you are saying this.

Center: After considering this issue, the central government has come to the conclusion that such an issue should not be debated on the basis of affidavit. Such issues are not up for debate before the court. However, this is a serious issue and the committee will look into it. Whether a particular software was used or not cannot be a matter of affidavit or debate in court. This issue has its dangers. Keeping in view the national security and public interest, we do not wish to file a detailed affidavit on this issue.

Supreme court: Last time we made it clear that we have no interest in matters related to national security. We had sought only a limited response, that too in cases where people were complaining of violation of rights before us. If you can clarify. This whole matter is limited to a special class of people, in which they are complaining of violation of privacy under Article 21.
We are saying once again that we have no interest in seeking information on matters of national security or defence. We are concerned only because journalists, activists etc. have come before us and only want to know whether the government has used any means which are not covered under the law.

What is Pegasus?

What is the Pegasus Controversy?
An international group of investigative journalists claims that Pegasus, the spy software of the Israeli company NSO, spied 50,000 people in 10 countries. So far 300 names have come up in India too, whose phones were monitored. These include ministers in the government, leaders of the opposition, journalists, lawyers, judges, businessmen, officers, scientists and activists.

How does Pegasus work?