Rajya Sabha MP and senior Congress leader P Chidambaram today hit out at the Narendra Modi government saying that it’s the only national government that is not concerned about the Pegasus snooping issue. He claimed that even France has sought a report from Israel on the matter.
“French President Macron called Israel’s PM Bennett and demanded full details of the alleged use of Pegasus spyware to hack phones in France, including the president’s phone. PM Bennett promised to share ‘findings’ of his investigation,” said Chidambaram in a tweet in Hindi.
The former finance minister also wondered whether the Modi government is fully aware of the espionage. “The only government that is not concerned about it is the Indian government! Is it because the government was fully aware of the espionage and does not require any further information from Israel or the NSO group?” he said.
एकमात्र सरकार जिसे कोई फिक्र नहीं है वह भारत सरकार है!
क्या ऐसा इसलिए है क्योंकि सरकार जासूसी के बारे में पूरी तरह से अवगत थी और उसे इज़राइल या एनएसओ समूह से किसी और जानकारी की आवश्यकता नहीं है?
— P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) July 26, 2021
Several reports have claimed that French President Emmanuel Macron spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on the Pegasus snooping allegations, seeking details. Macron spoke to Bennett over reports that Morocco’s security forces may have used the Pegasus spyware to snoop on his cellphones.
Chidambaram had said on Sunday that the government should either call for a joint parliamentary committee probe into the Pegasus snooping allegations or request the Supreme Court to appoint a sitting judge to investigate the matter.
The Opposition parties have repeatedly stalled the proceedings in Parliament urging the government to hold a discussion over the issue. On the other hand, the government has maintained that IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has already made a statement over the issue and there is no need for any discussion. This has resulted in a deadlock as both the houses are facing repeated adjournments.
Last week, an international media consortium reported that over 300 verified mobile phone numbers, including two ministers, over 40 journalists, three opposition leaders besides scores of businesspersons and activists in India, could have been targeted for hacking through the Pegasus spyware of the Israeli firm NSO Group. The government has been denying all Opposition allegations in the matter.