'Concerted attempt' to derail Parliament's Monsoon Session: BJP's Amit Malviya on illegal surveillance allegations

Hitting out at the Congress for accusing the government of its role in the alleged illegal surveillance of journalists using Pegasus spyware, BJP IT Cell national president Amit Malviya on Monday termed it as a "concerted attempt to derail the monsoon session of Parliament" and said that the Opposition does not have any evidence for their charges.

Speaking to ANI, Malviya said, "The Congress stung by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Bofors scandal thinks that accusing the government is the solution to every problem. The Government of India has clarified on the floor of the house that the report is unsubstantiated. It is a fishing expedition and no such surveillance has been indulged into. That should rest the matter."

He said that the NSO Group has been on target of "fishing expedition" for a long time and it is for them to clarify.

"There is no evidence or substantive intervention that has been made by the Opposition in this regard. This matter had come up in the past also and there is nothing new at this moment as well," said Malviya.

He further called the allegations a "concerted attempt" to derail the monsoon session of the parliament, adding that "every time such fabricated stories find their way into the media and this is no exception".

This comes after the Congress party demanded an independent probe into the alleged illegal surveillance of journalists using Pegasus spyware and sought the resignation of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

The names of over 40 Indian journalists appeared on the leaked list of potential targets for surveillance by an unidentified agency using Pegasus spyware, according to a report published in The Wire on Sunday.

According to the report, the journalists who were targeted work for some news organisations in the country including Hindustan Times, The Hindu, India Today, Indian Express and Network18. Many of them cover matters related to Defence, Home Ministry, Election Commission and Kashmir among others.

( With inputs from ANI )