Citing a recent US court verdict against Israel’s NSO Group, Congress leader Randeep Surjewala questioned the Supreme Court’s stance on the Pegasus spyware controversy. Alleging that 300 Indians were targeted, including prominent figures, Surjewala demanded the government disclose identities and urged Meta to release the names. The controversy has reignited debates on privacy, surveillance, and accountability in India.
BY PC Bureau
Highlighting a recent US court ruling in the Pegasus case, the Congress party on Sunday questioned whether the Supreme Court of India would initiate further inquiries into the alleged use of the spyware for illegal surveillance. On Friday, a US judge held Israel’s NSO Group liable for hacking WhatsApp and breaching its contract. The lawsuit accused NSO of exploiting a vulnerability in WhatsApp to install its spyware, Pegasus, and the case is now set to proceed to trial to determine damages.
Citing the US ruling, Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala alleged that 300 WhatsApp numbers of Indians were targeted by Pegasus. “The Pegasus spyware case verdict proves how 300 WhatsApp numbers of Indians were targeted in the illegal spyware racket,” Surjewala stated in a post on X.
ALSO READ: US court’s ruling: Israel’s NSO used Pegasus to hack phones of politicians, journalists.
Surjewala demanded that the central government disclose the identities of those targeted, asking: “Who are the two Union ministers? Who are the three opposition leaders? Who is the constitutional authority? Who are the journalists? Who are the businesspersons? What information was retrieved by the BJP government and agencies? How was it used, misused, and to what consequence?”
पेगासस जासूसी का अमेरिका में पर्दाफाश हो गया।
अब पेगासस स्पाइवेयर मामले के फैसले से साबित होता है कि कैसे अवैध स्पाइवेयर रैकेट में 300 भारतीयों को निशाना बनाया गया था।भारत में भी सच छुप नही सकता…
और
सच ये है कि मोदी सरकार ने जासूसी के जरिए प्रजातंत्र का अपहरण किया है। pic.twitter.com/MDZFGYLlC1
— Randeep Singh Surjewala (@rssurjewala) December 22, 2024
The Congress leader also called on the Supreme Court to take note of the US judgment in Meta v/s NSO. He urged the top court to make public the findings of the Committee of Technical Experts on Pegasus, which was submitted in 2021-22. Additionally, Surjewala asked if the court would direct Meta to release the names of the 300 Indians allegedly targeted.
“Will the Supreme Court now ask Meta to submit the 300 names to meet the ends of justice in the Pegasus case?” he asked. “Shouldn’t Facebook (now Meta) have a responsibility to release the names of 300 Indians targeted by Pegasus, considering WhatsApp and Facebook have the largest subscriber base in India and a ‘duty of care and disclosure’ to their clients in the country?”
What is the Pegasus Controversy?
The Pegasus spyware scandal resurfaced in 2021 when an investigation by an international media consortium under the Pegasus Project revealed that thousands of phone numbers globally, including several prominent Indians, were allegedly targeted using spyware developed by NSO Group. Those said to be potential targets included Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Union ministers Ashwini Vaishnaw and Pralhad Patel, and poll strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor.
The revelations led to heated debates in Parliament, with opposition members disrupting sessions in both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. The Supreme Court later stated that its technical expert committee could not detect Pegasus spyware in the 29 mobile phones examined, though it did find malware in five devices.
The US court’s ruling has reignited concerns over surveillance, transparency, and the use of Pegasus in India, with Congress pressing for further accountability and disclosure.
