New Delhi: The Congress party on Monday launched a scathing attack against the Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA government over the Pegasus project report, accusing the Indian government of espionage.
Speaking about this, Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said that the name of BJP should be changed to indian spy party (India’s Snooping Party).
He reiterated, “Rahul Gandhi was spied on, his cabinet ministers, security chiefs, media persons were spied on.” “Mr. Modi Which terrorists are being spied on and fought with?” she added.
Accusing the central government of suppressing the fundamental rights of citizens, Surjewala said the Center has played with the security of the country and termed the alleged act of espionage as shameful.
Congress party’s Rajya Sabha leader Mallikarjun Kharge has demanded Union Home Minister Amit Shah to resign and initiate investigation against PM Narendra Modi.
Addressing a press conference, former IT minister and BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad called the Congress party’s statements “a new low in political discourse by a party that has ruled India for many years”.
Prasad, like his successor in the IT ministry, questioned the intention behind releasing this report before the monsoon session of Parliament.
Earlier in the day, Union Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnav replied to the ‘Pegasus Project’ report in the Lok Sabha.
“A very sensational story was published last night by a web portal. Several top allegations were made around this story. The press report came out a day before the monsoon session of Parliament. It cannot be a coincidence,” IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnav in Lok Sabha said.
Reiterating the Government of India’s earlier response, Ashwini Vaishnav stressed that any kind of illegal surveillance is not possible with checks and balances in Indian laws and strong institutions. “In India, there is a well-established procedure through which the legitimate interception of electronic communications for the purpose of national security is carried out,” he said.
The report on the ‘Pegasus Project’ alleged that more than 40 journalists, 3 prominent opposition leaders, 1 constitutional authority, 2 serving ministers in the Narendra Modi government, current and former chiefs and officials of security organizations, and a large number of businessmen were involved. . List of potential or past victims of the Pegasus project.
The Guardian and The Washington Post claimed that several governments around the world, including the Indian government, are spying on eminent personalities through a special software called Pegasus, which is sold to governments of various countries by the Israeli surveillance company NSO.
These personalities include human rights activists, journalists and eminent lawyers. While the opposition parties targeted the central government over the claims, the latter vehemently denied these allegations.
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