Ping pong in Supreme Court on Pegasus - Centre evasive

The Pegasus mega snooping row is growing in intensity, and SC is intent on getting some answers

 Ping pong in Supreme Court on Pegasus - Centre evasive

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• The story: A major controversy broke out in 2019 over the alleged snooping of many Indian civilians, using an Israeli software "Pegasus". That issue got buried, but it erupted in 2021 as a consortium of Western and Global media reported many breaches across the world.
• Petitions in SC: The Indian Supreme Court soon saw many petitions filed by individuals whose names were on the list of potential snooping targets. They claimed an invasion of their right to privacy, a fundamental right.

1. In the series of hearings on the matter, the SC told the government it wanted to know whether Pegasus was used to allegedly spy on individuals and if it was done lawfully
2. The government expressed its unwillingness to file a detailed affidavit citing national security on pleas seeking an independent probe into the snooping row
3. SC observed that concerns were raised by journalists and others over violation of privacy in the Pegasus row
4. The government kept on dodging, and finally the SC said it will pass an interim order on the petitions (reiterating it was not interested in knowing issues related to national security)

• Why not give an affidavit: The SC noted that a detailed affidavit would have helped it in knowing the stand of the Centre. The bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana (and comprising Justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli) told Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta that he was beating around the bush. Mehta had said the Centre does not wish to file a detailed affidavit on whether a particular software is used or not as it was not a matter for public discussion and will not be in the "larger national interest".
• Think again: The SC permitted Mehta to mention the matter if the government has a re-think about filing a detailed affidavit as it would take two-three days time to finalise the order. The SC said it expected a limited affidavit since there are petitioners before us who say that their right to privacy has been violated by A or B agency.

1. The pleas for an independent probe followed reports of alleged snooping by government agencies on eminent citizens, politicians and scribes by using Israeli firm NSO's spyware Pegasus.
2. An international media consortium had reported that over 300 verified Indian mobile phone numbers were on the list of potential targets for surveillance using Pegasus spyware.
3. During the court hearing, Mehta began by saying that the government has considered the issue which is very important and cannot be made a subject matter of "judicial debate" or "public discourse" by filing an affidavit. Referring to the Telegraph Act and the Information Technology Act, he said the statutes provide for certain acts in some cases and stating that a particular software is being used will alert terror groups as there is counter technology to a technology.

• What about that: The bench referred to the earlier statement of the former Information and Technology (IT) Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad in which the report of snooping through Pegasus spyware was allegedly acknowledged. The SG said the government has nothing to hide and that is why the Centre has on its own said it will constitute a committee of domain experts who will look into the allegations and report to the court.
• Lost the change: The SC said it had given a fair opportunity to the Centre to make a statement, but it does not want to file an affidavit. So SC will pass an order.
• EXAM QUESTIONS: (1) Explain the problem with the government refusing to file a detailed affidavit in Court, on the Pegasus issue. (2) Why is the Supreme Court insisting on the government replying clearly if there was a breach of privacy, when matters of national security are involved?

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