Close X
Tuesday, November 26, 2024
ADVT 
India

Not a single shred of evidence to link govt, party to Pegasus report: BJP

Darpan News Desk IANS, 19 Jul, 2021 02:10 PM
  • Not a single shred of evidence to link govt, party to Pegasus report: BJP

New Delhi, July 19 (IANS) Calling the reports of alleged snooping on prominent citizens using Israeli Pegasus spyware as "baseless", the ruling BJP on Monday said there is not a single shred of evidence so far that links either the central government or the party to this controversy.

Addressing a press conference, former Information Technology minister and senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said, "BJP strongly refutes, condemns the baseless and bereft of political propriety comments levelled by Congress against the BJP. It is a new low for a party that has ruled India for more than 50 years."

"There is not a single shred of evidence so far that links either the central government or BJP to this controversy. This is a case of digital spyware, and thus at least some concrete evidence in data form should be presented to vindicate the charges made by the Congress," former IT minister said.

"There could be any number of potential databases across the world that contain the numbers or names of people. How does any such database concern the government of India unless some evidence is presented? Even for the supposed leak from this database, the people who broke this story itself claim that the presence of a phone number in the database does not mean there was an attempted hack or to infect with Pegasus," Prasad said.

Hitting out at the web portal (The Wire) which published the reports, Prasad said, "Yesterday, we saw a sensationalist report by a fringe news portal which is infamous for circulating fake news. However, even after days of build-up, it turned out to be a damp squib, as admitted by many people on social media."

He also attacked Amnesty International and said, "Can we deny that bodies like Amnesty had a declared anti-India agenda in many ways? They withdrew from India when we asked them about their foreign funding as per law."

"Those who broke the story themselves did not claim that a presence of a particular number in the database confirms that it is infected with Pegasus. It is of paramount importance to reveal all facts in front of the nation. WhatsApp very specifically contended before the Supreme Court that its data cannot be hacked by Pegasus," he said.

Prasad asked why only India is being targeted for the use of the spyware when 45 nations are using it.

"The NSO, which is the manufacturer of Pegasus, has clearly said that its clients are mostly Western nations. So why is India being targeted in this matter? What is the story behind this? What is the twist in the tale? Some people were brought in and their names were dropped," he said.

MORE India ARTICLES

Infosys Techies Accuse CEO, CFO Of Unethical Practices

Infosys Techies Accuse CEO, CFO Of Unethical Practices
A few anonymous employees of global software vendor Infosys have accused its Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Salil Parekh and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Nilanjan Roy of unethical practices for many quarters.

Infosys Techies Accuse CEO, CFO Of Unethical Practices

BJP Looks Set To Continue Winning Streak In Haryana, Maharashtra

BJP Looks Set To Continue Winning Streak In Haryana, Maharashtra
The saffron party appeared headed for a landslide victory in Haryana and a win with a huge margin in Maharashtra along with its allies, including Shiv Sena, five months after the tremendous performance in Lok Sabha elections.    

BJP Looks Set To Continue Winning Streak In Haryana, Maharashtra

World's Biggest Face Recognition System Arrives In India Next Month

With the tender submission date to procure the National Automated Facial Recognition System (AFRS) just 20 days away, India is closer to install worlds largest facial recognition system to track and nab criminals.    

World's Biggest Face Recognition System Arrives In India Next Month

Kartarpur Corridor: Harsimrat Badal Slams Pakistan For USD 20 Fee, Asks Punjab Govt To Bear It

Noting that the government has consistently urged Pakistan that it should not levy such a fee in deference to the wishes of the pilgrims, an MEA statement said that "Pakistan continue to insist on levying a service fee of $20 per pilgrim per visit".

Kartarpur Corridor: Harsimrat Badal Slams Pakistan For USD 20 Fee, Asks Punjab Govt To Bear It

How Dairy Model In Gujarat Is Ending Malnutrition Among Kids

In Asia's largest milk producing district--Banaskantha, when everything failed to bring out children from the throes of malnutrition, a dairy model made it possible.

How Dairy Model In Gujarat Is Ending Malnutrition Among Kids

Ruma Devi From Barmer Who Stitched Her Luck With Handmade Talent

She is just an eighth pass but she has made around 22,000 women in Rajasthan self-dependent by giving them decent jobs.

Ruma Devi From Barmer Who Stitched Her Luck With Handmade Talent