Not cooperating with Pegasus investigation is admission of guilt: CPI(M)

Party denounces Centre’s refusal to be accountable before the judiciary on the use of military grade spyware against its own citizens

Photo used for representational purpose only. | Photo Credit: Reuters

The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) hit out at the Narendra Modi government for not cooperating with the committee appointed by the Supreme Court to investigate the use of Pegasus spyware. The party called it an admission of guilt.

“Such obduracy of non-cooperation by the government is a clear admission that this spyware was misused against those holding high Constitutional office, opposition leaders, journalists etc, which has a damaging impact on the quality of democracy and democratic rights of citizens,” the CPI(M) Polit Bureau said in a statement here.

The committee submitted to the apex court that the government had not shared the necessary information with it.

It further claimed that out of the 29 phones that were investigated, malware was found only on five, and that it couldn’t be confirmed if it indeed was Pegasus.

The CPI(M) statement added: “The Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) strongly denounces the refusal of the Union Government to be accountable before the judiciary and to the country on the use of Pegasus, a military grade spyware, against our own citizens.”

The Supreme Court, the party said, had already commented that the fundamental rights of the citizens, particularly the right to privacy, cannot be breached in an indiscriminate manner by citing “national security” concerns.

The statement also pointed out that other countries like France, Mexico and Spain were seriously pursuing investigations into the use of Pegasus spyware. “Israeli investigations have revealed that the governments of countries like India, Hungary and Saudi Arabia have brought this spyware. Given this, it is incumbent upon the Union government to come clean and be accountable. The judiciary must ensure such accountability,” the party said.