India’s top court says government did not cooperate with panel probing Pegasus use

Supreme Court notes that of 29 devices submitted to committee, malware had been found in five

India’s Supreme Court has said that the federal government led by prime minister Narendra Modi did not cooperate in the probe into the use of Israeli NSO group spyware Pegasus.

Last October, the court had appointed an independent committee to probe the allegations that Mr Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government used the Israeli military-grade spyware to snoop on sitting members of parliament, judges, journalists, and activists.

The committee was also directed to look into whether the government or its agencies acquired the Pegasus spyware and used it on Indian citizens for surveillance.

It was also entrusted to make recommendations on enacting laws and procedures to protect the privacy of Indian citizens and suggest ways to raise grievances on suspicions of snooping.

On Thursday, a Supreme Court bench, including chief justice of India (CJI) NV Ramana and justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli, said in oral observations that the federal government did not cooperate with the probe.

“One thing committee has said, Government of India has not cooperated. The same stand you took here, you have taken there...” CJI Ramana told solicitor general Tushar Mehta, who was representing the federal government.

In January, a report by The New York Times had claimed that India bought Pegasus in 2017 as part of a larger arms deal with Israel.

Last year in July, an investigation by an international media consortium found that more than 50,000 phones were targeted using Pegasus.

At that time, the government had “unequivocally” denied in an affidavit all allegations relating to illegal surveillance but did not categorically say whether it used the software for spying, citing national security.

The Supreme Court bench noted on Thursday that of the 29 devices submitted to the committee, malware had been found on five.

“In five phones they found some malware, but it doesn’t mean it is a malware of Pegasus,” Justice Ramana said.

In October, the court had formed a technical committee comprising Dr Naveen Kumar Chaudhary, dean of National Forensic Sciences University in Gandhinagar; Dr Prabaharan P, professor at Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham in Kerala; and Dr Ashwin Anil Gumaste, institute chair associate professor at Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay.

The court had appointed Justice Raveendran to oversee the committee.

The court said on Thursday that the technical committee report cannot be made public in its entirety, but added that it will look into whether redacted parts can be uploaded.

“It is a huge report, let us see what portions we can give...These are technical issues. So far as Raveendran’s report, we will upload in website. No problem,” Justice Ramana said.

While appointing the committee in October, the Supreme Court had pulled up the federal government for not coming clear on citizens’ privacy concerns.

“Violation of the right to privacy, freedom of speech, as alleged in pleas, needs to be examined,” Justice Ramana had said. “The state cannot get a free pass every time by raising national security concerns. National security cannot be the bugbear that the judiciary shies away from, by virtue of its mere mentioning.”

While the matter will come up in the Supreme Court again in four weeks, the BJP claimed that the apex court had vindicated its stand.

In a press conference shortly after the hearing, former federal minister Ravi Shankar Prasad hit out at opposition parties, particularly the Congress, and demanded an apology for claiming that the Modi government engaged in snooping.

“It was a motivated campaign and far from the truth. It was an attempt to weaken and defame Modi,” the MP said.