The monsoon session has so far been a tumultuous one. However, the maximum ruckus till now occurred on Thursday, with things reaching such a point that when Communications Minister Ashwini Vaishnav was giving a statement on the Pegasus espionage case in the Rajya Sabha, TMC MP Shantanu Sen tore the statement paper from his hand and threw it towards the Deputy Speaker.
The government is preparing to give a notice of breach of privilege on this entire incident. The central government is going to take strict action against the Trinamool Congress MPs who have “misbehaved” against Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnav during the proceedings of the House.
There was a heated argument between Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri and Sen. Now, Shantanu Sen has alleged that Puri abused him during the proceedings of the House. Sen told the media that the Union Minister threatened and abused him. Not only this, Puri was about to hurt them physically. Marshals intervened to bring the situation under control.
Due to the heavy uproar, Vaishnav found it difficult to make a statement and had to lay it on the Table of the House. After two adjournments, as soon as the proceedings of the House began at 2 pm, Deputy Chairman Harivansh called out the name of Vaishnav to make a statement. Opposition members started a ruckus. Vaishnav had just started the statement when the commotion intensified. He could not be heard due to the uproar. The Deputy Chairman termed the attitude of the opposition parties as «unparliamentary» and urged the Union Minister to lay the statement on the Table of the House.
In his statement, Minister Vaishnav vehemently dismissed reports of alleged spying of Indians through Israeli spyware Pegasus, saying that the publication of such a report just before the monsoon session of Parliament is not a coincidence, but the allegation tarnishes the image of Indian democracy. Amidst the uproar by Opposition members in the Rajya Sabha, Vaishnav said in his statement that when there is already a system of control and surveillance in the country, then illegal surveillance by an unauthorized person is not possible.
Taking to microblogging sites Twitter and Koo, the Minister said, «A sensational story around Pegasus being published just a day before the monsoon session in Parliament cannot be a coincidence. In the past, similar claims were made regarding the use of Pegasus on WhatsApp. Those reports had no factual basis and were categorically denied by all parties, including in the Supreme Court.» He said, «This press story on Pegasus, done by a web portal on 18th July 2021, attempts to malign the Indian democracy and its well-established institutions.»
The Opposition has alleged that names of several Indian politicians, journalists, lawyers, and activists have appeared on the leaked list of potential targets for surveillance by an unidentified agency using Pegasus spyware. This comes following reports published in The Wire.
Speaking to ANI, BJP Rajya Sabha MP Swapan Dasgupta said, «It seems that some people of Opposition, notably some of the TMC MPs, got up and took the paper from the hands of the IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw while he was speaking on ‹Pegasus› and tore it up. This is completely unseemly behaviour. He was making a statement, you had a right to question him after that but instead of going in for a debate, is this the type of hooliganism we see inside the House? This is completely against all norms, I think it should be condemned outright.»
Mahesh Poddar, BJP MP, said: «When they can kill their opponents in Bengal and misbehave with women, they can do anything. Today they snatched paper and tore it, it won›t be a surprise if they tear clothes tomorrow. I condemn it,» said.
However, TMC MP Sukhendu Sekhar Roy evaded a question on the same outside Parliament. Earlier on Thursday, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge alleged that the government is trying to scuttle down the issue. «We have been demanding discussion on the Pegasus issue. But the government is only giving a statement. One can only ask for clarification if a statement is given and not all members will be able to speak. The government is doing the same. It is an attempt to scuttle down and save themselves. They are not allowing other members to speak,» Kharge told ANI.
WITH AGENCY INPUTS