New Delhi: Union Minister and BJP leader Anurag Thakur on Friday criticised Congress MP Rahul Gandhi for his remarks on alleged Pegasus snooping as during a lecture, Rahul claimed that he had been warned by the intelligence officers to be "careful" while speaking on the phone as his calls were being recorded.
"Yesterday's (poll) results show that the Congress has been washed out and Rahul Gandhi has begun crying about it on foreign soil. He knew what the (poll) results would be. Politicians worldwide are talking about how respect for India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi has grown. Rahul could have at least listened to what Italian leaders say," Anurag Thakur said in reference to the Wayanad MP's mother Sonia Gandhi who is of Italian origin.
Anurag Thakur's remarks were also in reference to Italian PM Giorgia Meloni who hailed PM Modi, saying, "PM Modi is the most loved one of all (leaders) around the world. This is really proven that he has been a major leader and congratulations for that", as per news agency ANI.
The BJP leader then took a swipe at the grand old party for facing defeat in northeastern states, particularly Tripura, where it allied with the Left to consolidate votes: "Rahul Gandhi and Congress party could not accept people's mandate. He couldn't accept one defeat after another."
Pertaining to allegations of snooping with Israeli spyware Pegasus, the Union Minister asked: "Why didn't Rahul Gandhi submit his phone? Why didn't he and other leaders submit their devices?" "They have become habituated to lying and using foreign lands, foreign friends, and foreign agencies. They are used to defaming India. He can hate the Prime Minister, but this plot to defame India internationally raises questions about the Congress party's intentions," he remarked.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi brought up the allegations of Pegasus snoop gate during a lecture at Cambridge University
Congress leader and ex-advisor to former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Sam Pitroda shared a YouTube link of Rahul Gandhi's address to MBA students at Cambridge Judge Business School on the topic of 'Learning to Listen in the 21st Century', on Twitter.
"I myself had Pegasus on my phone. A large number of politicians had Pegasus on their phones. I have been called by intelligence officers who told me, 'Please be careful about what you are saying on the phone because we are sort of recording the stuff. So this is the constant pressure that we feel. Cases on the Opposition. I have got a number of criminal liable cases for things that should under no circumstances be criminal liable cases. That's what we are trying to defend," the Congress leader can be heard saying in his address.
He further claimed that constraints were being put on the Parliament, media, and Judiciary in India.
"Everybody knows and it's been in the news a lot that Indian democracy is under pressure and under attack. I am an Opposition leader in India, we are navigating that (Opposition) space. The institutional framework which is required for a democracy -- Parliament, free press, the judiciary, just the idea of mobilisation, moving around -- all are getting constrained. So, we are facing an attack on the basic structure of Indian democracy," Rahul Gandhi remarked.
More On It: Officers Told Me To Be Careful On Phone As Calls Were Being Recorded: Rahul Gandhi At Cambridge
Pegasus Row
In June 2021, a report by The Wire report claimed that at least "two mobile phone accounts" used by Rahul Gandhi were among 300 verified Indian numbers listed as potential targets by an official Indian client of the Israeli surveillance technology vendor, NSO Group.
Not just Rahul Gandhi, the contact of five of his social friends/acquaintances were on the list of potential targets, the report claimed, stating that while the Wayanad MP does not have these handsets any longer, his numbers "appear to have been selected for targeting – from mid-2018 to mid-2019".
However, in August last year, the Supreme Court-appointed committee, set up to look into the allegations of the government allegedly using Pegasus for snooping, had concluded that the spyware was not found in the 29 mobile phones examined by it. Reading the report of the committee. "We are concerned about the technical committee report... 29 phones were given and in five phones some malware was found but the technical committee says it cannot be said to be Pegasus,", the bench had said, as per news agency ANI.