Apple row: BJP MP rejects demand for LS panel probe, says 'not run by Shashi Tharoor'

New Delhi: The BJP-led Centre's tussle with the Opposition over Apple's ‘hacking’ alert intensified on Wednesday, with the Congress demanding a probe into the controversy by Lok Sabha's Standing Committee on Information and Technology. Claiming the committee didn't have jurisdiction in the matter, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey said the panel was not being run by Shashi Tharoor or Rahul Gandhi (both Congress leaders) but in accordance with Lok Sabha's rules and regulations.

"The country does not run by creating pressure by giving statements in newspapers. The Standing Committee on Information and Technology is no longer headed by Shashi Tharoor and run by Rahul Gandhi (both Congress leaders). This committee runs under the rules of the Lok Sabha," he wrote on X in Hindi.

He claimed per Lok Sabha rules, the panel can't probe Apple's alert as it falls under the purview of the Central government and the police.

"Our committee, of which I am also a member cannot, hold a meeting on this subject," he added.

Congress MP Karthi Chidambaram told HT today he was writing to the chairperson of the panel, Prataprao Jadhav, demanding summons to Apple over its alerts to politicians warning against "state-sponsored attack".

"I am writing to parliamentary committee chairperson Prataprao Jadhav to call all the affected parties and the company [Apple] representatives. This is a very important issue. How can they [the government] claim that it is an ‘algorithmic malfunction’ when it affects only Opposition members?” he said.

CPI(M) MP John Brittas, meanwhile, has written to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology, demanding an urgent meeting for the examination of Apple's notification.

On Tuesday, several opposition leaders claimed they had received an alert on their Apple devices warning them against "state-sponsored attackers trying to remotely compromise" their iPhones.

In a statement later, Apple said it didn't attribute the threat notification to any specific state-sponsored attacker and that the alert could be a "false alarm".

Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, in a series of posts on X, called Apple's information on the issue "vague and non-specific in nature".

"Apple states these notifications may be based on information which is ‘incomplete or imperfect’. It also states that some Apple threat notifications may be false alarms or some attacks are not detected. Apple has also claimed that Apple IDs are securely encrypted on devices, making it extremely difficult to access or identify them without the user's explicit permission. This encryption safeguards the user's Apple ID and ensures that it remains private and protected," he wrote.

"The Government of Bharat takes its role of protecting the privacy and security of all citizens very seriously and will investigate to get to the bottom of these notifications. In light of such information and widespread speculation, we have also asked Apple to join the investigation with real, accurate information on the alleged state sponsored attacks," he added.