SC stays proceedings of WB's Lokur panel probing Pegasus snooping allegations
New Delhi, Dec 17: The Supreme Court in a significant development on Friday stayed the ongoing inquiry by a West Bengal government appointed commission headed by former apex court judge M B Lokur to probe the Pegasus snooping allegations.
A bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana expressed dissatisfaction over the inquiry also being conducted by the West Bengal commission. On October 27, it had ordered the setting up of a three-member panel of cyber experts to probe the alleged use of Israeli spyware Pegasus for the surveillance of certain people under the monitoring of former apex court judge R V Raveendran.
The bench, also comprising Justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli, on Friday took note of the plea that the Lokur commission had commenced work despite the assurance of the West Bengal government it would not proceed with the inquiry.
What is this? Last time you (West Bengal government) had given an undertaking, which we wanted to record, that the commission will not proceed. You had said that it was not necessary to record in the order. Again you started inquiring, said the bench.
Senior advocate A M Singhvi, appearing for the state government, said it had earlier conveyed the message of restraint to the Lokur panel which did not proceed till delivery of the October 27 order. Moreover, the government cannot give such a direction, he said.
Can I make one thing clear that I had said that I do not control the commission but I would convey the restraint. I conveyed the restraint and it was up to the time till the court decides the matter.
"Now after the Lordships decided the matter (Pegasus cases), the commission started...Simply call the counsel of the commission (Lokur panel) and pass the orders and I cannot as the state government give instructions. I had conveyed the restraint and the commission did not do anything till the court passed the order, Singhvi said.
The bench said it understands the state's predicament and ordered, Alright, we will issue notice to all the concerned respondents and for the time being we stay all the proceedings.
Lawyer M L Sharma, who has filed a plea in his personal capacity, said the proceedings of the West Bengal Commission of inquiry was gross contempt of court. We will see, the bench observed.
The matter was mentioned for urgent hearing on Thursday before the bench by NGO Global Village Foundation Charitable Trust, which submitted that the commission was going ahead with the probe despite the fact that the top court has constituted an expert committee in the case.
The NGO said the state government had assured the top court that it would not proceed with the probe.
Besides Justice Lokur, former Calcutta High Court chief justice Jyotirmay Bhattacharya is the other member of the commission of inquiry announced by the West Bengal government recently.
Appointing the panel of experts on October 27, the apex court had said the state cannot get a "free pass" every time the spectre of national security is raised and it cannot be the bugbear that the judiciary shies away from.
Delivering one of the more significant verdicts in recent times over the issue of citizens' right to privacy, it had said mere invocation of national security by the state cannot render the judiciary a "mute spectator" and asserted that indiscriminate spying on individuals in a democratic country cannot be allowed.
An international media consortium has reported that over 300 verified Indian mobile phone numbers were on the list of potential targets for surveillance using Pegasus spyware.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
