Demand for Pegasus inquiry

INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi’s main political rival Rahul Gandhi last Friday (23) demanded an inquiry into the Pegasus spyware scandal, accusing the government of “treason”.

Gandhi is one of dozens of Indian politicians, journalists and government critics on an alleged global database of 50,000 possible Pegasus spying targets that was revealed by an international group of media outlets.

The Indian government has rejected spying claims although critics note it has not said whether it is a client of NSO Group, the Israeli maker of the Pegasus spyware which effectively captures a target’s mobile phone.

The claims sparked uproar in the Indian parliament, with one opposition MP – since suspended – last Thursday (22) snatching and ripping up the text of a statement on the subject being delivered by IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. “Pegasus is classified by the Israeli state as a weapon and that weapon is supposed to be used against terrorists,” Gandhi, 51, told reporters.

It is not known how many of the phones on the list were actually targeted for surveillance or how many attempts were successful. But according to Indian news website The Wire – one of the media outlets given access to the database by two rights groups – mounting forensic evidence suggests one or more official agency has been using the spyware.

Modi’s government has said any covert surveillance is done in accordance with strict rules and oversight.