Chief minister Mamata Banerjee today charged the BJP-led Centre with conniving at alleged snooping over activists and journalists with an Israeli software and demanded a thorough probe into the “nefarious act”. “My phone is also being tapped by the central agencies. Now, WhatsApp, which is used by millions, is, too, being targeted by those agencies for snooping. This Israeli spyware was supplied to the Centre and the Centre is indulging in such a nefarious act,” she said.

Firing a salvo at the Centre, Banerjee alleged that two governments were behind the snooping. “One is the BJPled government at the Centre and the other is also headed by the BJP, but I won’t name it without getting the details,” she said, adding that the hard earned freedom of the people was being “curtailed”. “ The right of everybody, from the common man to the judiciary is being curtailed,” she said. The Congress and the CPIM also lashed out at the Centre over the snooping controversy.

The Congress stated a “dishonest” government was refusing to answer key questions such as who purchased and deployed the illegal spyware used for the alleged surveillance. On Thursday, Facebookowned company WhatsApp had said Indian journalists and human rights activists were among those globally spied upon by unnamed entities using Israeli spyware Pegasus, triggering a furore over breach of citizens’ privacy. Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said in May WhatsApp had “quickly resolved a security issue and notified relevant Indian and international government authorities”.

“A dishonest BJP Govt refuses to answer relevant questions on #WhatsAppSpygat : Who in GOI purchased & deployed the illegal spyware? Who ~PM or NSA ~ authorised the purchase ? If Facebook had informed GOI in May 2019, why was govt mum ?” he said in a tweet. Following the disclosure by WhatsApp, the Indian government has asked the messaging platform to explain the matter and list out the measures it has taken to safeguard the privacy of millions of Indians. According to sources, the company has been asked to submit its response by 4 November.

On the other hand, a US state department report has stated India continues to remain concerned over the use of Internet and social media and messaging apps, including WhatsApp, for recruitment and radicalisation of terrorists.