Senior journalists N. Ram, Sashi Kumar move Supreme Court seeking probe into alleged use of Pegasus for mass surveillance

Senior journalists N Ram and Sashi Kumar have filed a plea before the Supreme Court seeking a probe into reports on the alleged use of Pegasus spyware to spy on union ministers, opposition leaders, and 40 journalists among others by a sitting or former Supreme Court judge.

According to the plea, a global investigation carried out by several leading media groups around the globe indicates that more than 142 persons in India, including lawyers, ministers, opposition leaders, journalists among others were identified as potential targets for surveillance through Pegasus spyware.

The plea also states that through the forensic analysis of several mobile phones of potential targets by the Security Lab of Amnesty International, security breaches have been confirmed.

According to The Wire, “Such mass surveillance using a military-grade spyware abridges several fundamental rights and appears to represent an attempt to infiltrate, attack and destabilise independent institutions that act as critical pillars of our democratic set-up,” the plea said.

The petitioners have requested the Supreme Court to direct the government of India to disclose whether it or any of its agencies had obtained a license for or used the Pegasus spyware to conduct surveillance of any kind.