Pegasus spyware row: Congress lauds Supreme Court for forming 3-member probe team

With Supreme Court tightening the noose on the central government by forming a three-member committee to oversee the probe in the Pegasus spyware snoopgate row on Wednesday, senior Congress leader Ashwini Kumar has hailed the apex court’s decision and termed the judgement as court’s reiteration of 'non-negotiable constitutional right to privacy'.

He further lauded the top court’s decision and said that the order reflects the court’s prerogative as the 'custodian of the citizen's fundamental rights'.

Speaking to ANI, Ashwani Kumar said, "I welcome the Supreme Court's order. It is a reiteration of the non-negotiable constitutional right to privacy. The order reinforces the court's claim as the custodian of the citizen's fundamental rights."

Congress leader Ashwani Kumar lauds top court for reinforcing citizen's right to privacy

He hailed the court’s commitment to the case even as the central government refused to produce clarity on the issue, calling it an issue comprising national security. The apex court constituted the three-membered committee to overlook the technical committee probing the Israeli spyware case, wherein the technical committee will be probing the issues comprising cyber security, digital forensics, networks, and hardware.

Former law minister, Ashwani Kumar continued to add that the top court’s intervention has reassured citizens that those in power cannot abuse it and can be held accountable if people’s fundamental rights are compromised.

He told ANI, "The order holds those in power accountable and reassures citizens that the imperatives of the constitutional governance will be enforced and that obfuscation on the part of government will not be allowed to defeat fundamental freedoms and inalienable human rights.”

SC sets up 3 member committee to oversee probe on Pegasus Spyware row

The three-member committee constituted by the Supreme Court that oversees the technical committees would be headed by retired Justice R V Raveendran, along with Alok Joshi and Sandeep Oberoi.

The court has requested the committee to thoroughly investigate the charges and present the report to the court in the next hearing that is scheduled after eight weeks. Dr Naveen Kumar Chaudhary, Dr Prabaharan P, and Dr Ashwin Anil Gumaste will serve on the Technical Committee.

Passing the judgement on Israeli spyware snooping allegations, the CJI affirmed that restrictions can be imposed only to safeguard national security. Stressing that surveillance affects the rights of the people, he iterated that this technology may have a chilling effect on the freedom of the press. The Apex court made its observations, maintaining that privacy is important for all citizens.

The CJI affirmed, "This court gave ample time to Centre to disclose all information regarding the Pegasus attack since 2019. However, only a limited affidavit was filed throwing no light. If the Centre made it clear the burden on us would have been less."

The court underlined that there is a serious concern about the involvement of a foreign agency in spying on Indian citizens, he observed,

"The state cannot get a free pass every time by raising national security concerns. No omnibus prohibition can be called against judicial review. The Centre should have justified its stand here and not render the court a mute spectator."

With ANI Inputs

Image: Pixabay/ ANI/ PTI