Sharad Pawar wants Congress leader in Pegasus probe panel; downplays Defence Min response

Even as the Centre decided to conduct a probe into the Pegasus 'snooping' issue, NCP chief Sharad Pawar contended that the real question remains answered. Addressing a press conference at NCP's Mumbai office, Pawar questioned the Union government on whether it had purchased the Pegasus spyware from the Israel-based NSO Group. Making light of the Defence Ministry's written response to Parliament that it has had no transactions with the cybersecurity firm, the former Union Minister opined that the matter falls in the domain of the Home Ministry. 

He added, The Supreme Court has decided to constitute a committee to probe the Pegasus matter. Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Kapil Sibal and P Chidambaram have studied this issue extensively. I am of the opinion that transparency will increase if one out of these three is included in the panel. But this is solely the prerogative of the Supreme Court."

A division bench of CJI NV Ramana and Justice Surya Kant is hearing petitions filed by advocate ML Sharma, CPI MP John Brittas, Association for Democratic Reforms founder Jagdeep Chhokar, Narendra Mishra, three journalists and the Editors Guild of India. In an affidavit filed by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology on Monday, the Centre categorically rubbished all allegations but agreed to form a committee of experts for probing all aspects of the issue. Sibal, whose name was suggested by the NCP supremo, is representing some of the petitioners in the case. 

The Pegasus row

The controversy came to the fore when French non-profit Forbidden Stories and Amnesty International accessed a leaked database of 50,000 phone numbers that were allegedly targeted by Pegasus. As per media reports, the Pegasus spyware targeted over 300 Indian mobile numbers including that of 40 journalists, businesspersons, one constitutional authority, three opposition leaders and two sitting Ministers in the Union government. The database also allegedly contained the numbers of activists who are accused and incarcerated in the Bhima Koregaon case.

Making a statement on this issue in Rajya Sabha on July 22, Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw stated, "A highly sensational story was published by a web portal on the 18th July 2021. Many over-the-top allegations have been made around this story. Honourable Chairman Sir, the press reports have appeared a day before the Monsoon session of Parliament. This cannot be a coincidence, honourable Chairman Sir. In the past, similar claims were made regarding the use of Pegasus on WhatsApp. Those reports had no factual basis and were categorically denied by all parties including in the Supreme Court".