HomePolitics NewsWhatsApp hacking: Anxious moments before a tie-breaker and casting vote ensure panel of MPs examines Pegasus deal

WhatsApp hacking: Anxious moments before a tie-breaker and casting vote ensure panel of MPs examines Pegasus deal

Panel of MPs headed by Congress’ Shashi Tharoor who met to discuss if they should examine reports of the government snooping on citizens had heated discussions on the topic.

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By Rituparna Bhuyan  November 21, 2019, 1:08:16 PM IST (Updated)

WhatsApp hacking: Anxious moments before a tie-breaker and casting vote ensure panel of MPs examines Pegasus deal
The corridor outside Committee Room B in Parliament House Annexe was buzzing as Indian lawmakers from both the upper and lower houses took their seats at about 3 pm on Wednesday to discuss the topic “Citizens’ Data Security and Privacy’.


Home secretary AK Bhalla, the top official in charge of internal security in the country, sat patiently with his colleagues in the corridor, waiting for his turn to be called by the parliamentary panel. Giving him company was Ajay Prakash Swahney, secretary of the Ministry of Information Technology. Across the corridor, another set of officials from the department of Atomic Energy had an impatient mien, constantly looking at the files they were carrying or discussing the probable queries that they may face from the MPs.

Inside, 24 MPs of the 30 member panel headed by Congress’ Shashi Tharoor who had gathered for the meeting were having heated discussions on the topic. Just a few days ago, India was rocked by news reports that 121 civil society activists and journalists were snooped upon by using a special Israeli software called Pegasus, named after the mythological Greek winged horse.

Activists and human rights lawyers who have spoken out against government policies were among those hacked. The government asked WhatsApp Inc to explain the hacking

Minutes turned to hours as the MPs could not agree on whether they should discuss the topic. An MP, who came out to use the washroom smiled at the waiting journalists, and told them cryptically: “We are just warming up.”

The unusually long meeting meant that many officials had to reschedule their previous engagements. Home secretary Bhalla took permission of the lawmakers to leave because he had to meet a foreign delegation that was waiting for him at North Block. His deputies were assigned to represent the home ministry.

At around 7 pm, four hours after the start of the meeting, the lawmakers emerged.

It so happened that many MPs from the ruling benches were opposed to the panel taking up the topic. For nearly two hours, there were intense debates on the pros and cos of discussing the issue. As matters came to a standstill, it was decided to take a vote on the issue.

However, the deadlock couldn't be broken as the voting ended in a 12-12 tie. Tharoor then had to take matters in his own hands and used his casting vote to tilt the scales. The panel finally had a mandate — to discuss the topic that had taken the country by storm.

Once that happened, the officials were called by the MPs and quizzed. They were asked repeatedly by the members if Indian agencies — only 10 are allowed to snoop under strict conditions, according to the government — used Pegasus to spy on citizens. All the officials denied ever using the cutting edge software.

The only issue agreed upon by the panel unanimously was to meet again at a later date to discuss the issue. But no call was taken — unlike the previous committee — to summon a global company like Whatsapp, whose encrypted messaging platform was hacked or the Israeli spyware firm NSO which developed Pegasus.

As the lawmakers headed for tea after the meeting, many of them were seen engaging in friendly banter. The people, whose phones were broken into, will have to wait for some more time to get an answer to the big question: were they spied upon by their own government?

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