Have nothing to hide: Centre tells Supreme Court on Pegasus row

Tuesday, 17 August 2021Newsdesk

The Centre Tuesday told the Supreme Court that it has “nothing to hide” in the Pegasus row and that the matter concerns “national security.” A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) N V Ramana issued a notice to the Centre and said that the government must reply within ten days on allegations that the Israeli spyware was used for snooping, adding it will decide on forming a committee after getting the response.

New Delhi, 17 August 2021

As per news report of The Indian Express, Stating that the matter cannot be “subject to a public debate,” Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the apex court, “These software are purchased by every country and the petitioners want it to be divulged if the software has not been used. If we divulge this then the terrorists can take preventive steps. These are national security issues and we cannot hide anything from the court.” Mehta further added that the details can be submitted to a committee of experts. “We can divulge this to a committee of experts and it’ll be a neutral body. Would you as a constitutional court expect such issues to be divulged before court & put up for public debate? Committee will place its report before court. But how can we sensationalise the issue.” The Supreme Court was hearing a batch of petitions seeking an independent probe into the allegations of surveillance through the use of Pegasus spyware.

Source -indianexpress.com