Why Centre not investigating Pegasus ‘spying scandal’: Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury

Why Centre not investigating Pegasus 'spying scandal' Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury

NEW DELHI: Congress Party leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Monday termed Pegasus as a ‘spying scandal’ and asked the Centre why it is not investigating the matter.

Speaking to ANI of Monday, the Congress leader said, “This government is wasting money. What should we do? Not just in this country, discussions on Pegasus are happening all over the world. Countries like Israel, France, the US, Europe are investigating into the matter. Then, why is the Centre not investigating it? Why is the PM Modi government scared? I tell you, Pegasus is a spying scandal.”
“Issues of farmers, rising inflation etc are not resolved yet and not this Pegasus spying scandal has surfaced. The government should look into the matter as soon as possible”, Chowdhury added.

Over the last few weeks, the Opposition parties in the country have alleged that names of several Indian politicians, journalists, lawyers, and activists have appeared on the leaked list of potential targets for surveillance by an unidentified agency using Pegasus spyware. This comes following reports published in The Wire.

The business of both the Houses of the Parliament remained majorly disrupted due to the continuous ruckus created by the Opposition over the issues including farmers’ protest, Pegasus spyware, COVID-19 and inflation.

Chowdhury further slammed the Centre over the ongoing tensions between Mizoram and Assam border.

He said, “These disputes clearly highlight the failure of the Ministry of Home Affairs. Amit Shah ji cannot understand the sentiments of the people of the North-Eastern region. He (Shah) just goes there, makes tall claims and come back here.”

The developments come after Union Home Minister Amit Shah earlier held a telephonic discussion with Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma and Mizoram CM Zoramthanga towards a peaceful resolution of the border differences.

After the talks, Zoramthanga said in a tweet: “…in order to prevent any possible escalation of the situation, I request the people of Mizoram to avoid posting sensitive messages and make judicious use of their social media platform.”

Assam CM Sarma also tweeted, “I have noted statements in media by Honble CM @ZoramthangaCM wherein he has expressed his desire to settle the border dispute amicably. Assam always wants to keep the spirit of North East alive. We are also committed to ensuring peace along our borders.” (ANI)