‘Understand chronology’: Shah links leak to Session

NEW DELHI: Union minister Amit Shah on Monday blamed reports of the Indian government allegedly using Israeli software Pegasus to potentially target the phones of journalists, activists, ministers and politicians as an operation by global “disruptors” in collusion with domestic “obstructors”, and said forces unable to digest India’s progress would “not be able to derail the development trajectory through their conspiracies”.

Shah, who issued a statement hours after opposition parties did not allow Prime Minister Narendra Modi to introduce his new Cabinet colleagues in Parliament, questioned the timing of the reports on the eve of the Monsoon Session.

“In what seemed like a perfect cue, late last evening we saw a report which has been amplified by a few sections with only one aim -- to do whatever is possible and humiliate India at the world stage, peddle the same old narratives about our nation and derail India’s development trajectory,”

Shah said.

“People have often associated this phrase with me in lighter vein but today I want to seriously say - the timing of the selective leaks, the disruptions… Aap Chronology Samajhiye! (understand the chronology). This is a report by the disrupters for the obstructers. Disrupters are global organisations which do not like India to progress. Obstructers are political players in India who do not want India to progress. People of India are very good at understanding this chronology and connection,” he added.

Asserting that Parliament session will nonetheless bear new fruits of progress, Shah said: “The people of India have high hopes from the current Monsoon Session. Key bills for the welfare of farmers, youngsters, women and the backward sections of society are lined up for debate and discussion.”

He also targeted Congress, saying the party has “good past experience in trampling over democracy and with their own house not in order, they are now trying to derail anything progressive that comes up in Parliament”.

An international collaborative investigation involving 17 media organisations, including The Guardian, The Washington Post, Die Zeit, and The Wire, reported on Sunday that India is among the countries where Israeli company NSO Group’s Pegasus software was used to target the phones of journalists, activists, opposition leaders and ministers for snooping. A fresh report on Monday revealed that aside from 38 journalists, the numbers of former Congress party chief Rahul Gandhi, political strategist Prashant Kishor, former election commissioner Ashok Lavasa and Union minister Prahlad Patel were potentially selected.

SHAH TARGETS CONGRESS, SAYING THE PARTY HAS ‘GOOD PAST EXPERIENCE IN TRAMPLING OVER DEMOCRACY...’