Modi govt must give SC details of 100 Indians spied upon through Pegasus spyware: Congress
New Delhi, Apr 12 (PTI): The Congress on Saturday demanded that the Centre put before the Supreme Court the latest revelations made in the US court that 100 Indians were spied upon using the Pegasus spyware.
Addressing a press conference here, party leader Randeep Surjewala said it was clear that the Pegasus was used to hack the cell phones of 100 Indians, and demanded a court-ordered inquiry into the matter.
"NSO, which has sold the Pegasus software, has clearly said that the spying software licences were taken by sovereign governments. It is clear that spying was done, but when will the Modi government answer on this," he said.
"Does this not prove prima facie that the (Narendra) Modi government bought the Pegasus software for spying? Who are these 100 people who were spied upon and with whose permission were their phones hacked," Surjewala said.
He said the government should also tell who gave permission to buy the software and where the money came from.
"When documents have been made public in America's court, is it not the government of India's responsibility to present the documents before the Supreme Court on April 22, so that the Court carries out a thorough investigation into this entire issue? The Modi government must give answers to these questions," he asserted.
The Congress leader said this has come out in the exchange of pleadings/documents between WhatsApp & NSO Group (owner of Pegasus) in US Court reflecting that the spyware was purchased by a "Sovereign," ie a government or its agencies.
The targets were opposition leaders, judges, journalists, even Union minister(s) and other prominent individuals, he said, adding that Rahul Gandhi had brought out the issue of Pegasus spyware being used on those in disagreement with the current Government.
Earlier, the issue snowballed into a major controversy and a full session of Parliament was wasted after the Congress and several parties in the opposition demanded a thorough investigation into the matter.
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Mangaluru: Young woman from West Bengal found unwell near Netravati river, Gang rape suspected
Mangaluru: A young woman from West Bengal was reportedly found in a severely ill condition by locals late Wednesday night near Ranipur, on the banks of Nethravathi river, leading to suspicions of gang rape.
The woman has been admitted to a private hospital in Derlakatte. The police have registered a case and are investigating the incident.
Reports suggest that three people including a rickshaw driver allegedly gang-raped the victim. The police have reportedly taken the rickshaw driver into custody based on the suspicion.
It has been alleged that a group of young individuals brought the young woman to a house near the banks of the Netravati river in Ranipur and committed the crime.
The young woman, native of West Bengal, who had come to Mangaluru with a friend in search of employment, and was living in Uppala, Kerala. She ventured out alone at midnight and reportedly sought help from an auto-rickshaw driver she met. It is learned that the driver, under the pretext of offering assistance, allowed her to board his vehicle, administered drugs to her, and then committed the crime along with his accomplices.
The young woman, who was severely injured, knocked on the door of a local resident's house late at night. She collapsed and fell unconscious after asking for water. The family promptly alerted the police.
Upon receiving the information, the police rushed to the spot and immediately admitted the young woman to the hospital. Police Commissioner Anupam Agarwal later visited the scene.
