Pegasus row: Congress calls for privilege motion against Centre
Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury's letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla came a day after several opposition parties attacked the government following a report by the New York Times that said India purchased the spyware in 2017.
The Congress’s Lok Sabha floor leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Sunday to seek a privilege motion against Union minister of information technology Ashwini Vaishnaw for “deliberately misleading the House on the Pegasus issue”.
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The notice is the latest escalation of an attack by the Opposition aimed at the Union government over the alleged use of military-grade Israeli-origin spyware Pegasus. The letter comes a day after several opposition parties attacked the government following a report by the New York Times that said India purchased the spyware in 2017.
“The government, on the floor of the House, always maintained that it had nothing to do with the Pegasus spyware and it never bought the spyware from the NSO Group,” Chowdhury wrote in the letter, before adding that “in light of the revelations… it appears that the Modi government has misled the parliament and the Supreme Court...”
Chowdhury cited affidavits submitted by the government in which, he said, the government claimed to “unequivocally deny any and all of the allegations” on the Pegasus issue.
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The MP’s letter reflects the principal opposition party’s toughened stand on the controversy, which relates to allegations that the mobile phone hacking tool was used against Indian citizens, including political opponents, journalists and members of the judiciary.
In the 2021 monsoon session, the Congress-led opposition demanded clarifications from the PM on Pegasus and nearly washed out the session through massive protests and disruption. The Budget session beginning Monday is likely to witness protests over the issue again.
In his letter to the Speaker, Chowdhury said: “I demand that a Privilege Motion may be initiated against the Minister of Information Technology for deliberately misleading the House on the Pegasus issue”.
A privilege motion is only initiated after the Speaker or the Chairman gives approval in their respective Houses. In the past few years, many allegations and demands for privilege motions against rival lawmakers have not found favour from the chair.
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In the 2021 monsoon session, Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw gave a suo motu statement in both houses and said there is ‘no substance’ in previous media reports regarding the use of Pegasus. He also assured parliament that illegal spying is impossible in the country.
The Congress has announced that the Pegasus issue will come up in parliament. Party’s chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala alleged the Centre has misled both Parliament and the Supreme Court. “The role of the Prime Minister and his responsibility is now directly in question. Kharge Saheb (Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge) has said, we will discuss this other political parties and seek accountability...”
Kharge also claimed that the statement by Vaishnaw in Parliament indicated that “there is no purchase, nothing. So, it is their statement. What we will do... take other political parties also in confidence and further action will be taken,” he said.
