'Habit Of Defaming India': Anurag Thakur Takes Dig At Rahul Gandhi Over Pegasus Remarks

New Delhi: Union Minister Anurag Thakur criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for allegedly "defaming India". Thakur was referring to Gandhi's speech at Cambridge University wherein he alleged that his phone was being monitored using the Pegasus spyware and that he had been cautioned by intelligence officials to be cautious about what he said on the phone as his conversations were being recorded.

#WATCH | Rahul Gandhi has a habit of lying and defaming India. This raises questions on the agenda of the Congress party: Union minister & BJP leader Anurag Thakur pic.twitter.com/3yTFgtlvTW

— ANI (@ANI) March 3, 2023

Sam Pitroda, an ex-advisor to former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, shared a link to the video of Rahul Gandhi's lecture on Twitter, where Rahul spoke about the importance of listening in the modern era. Rahul claimed that many politicians, including himself, had been targeted by the Pegasus spyware. Replying to this, Thakur said, "Rahul Gandhi has a habit of lying and defaming India. This raises questions on the agenda of the Congress party."

Indian Intelligence officers have told me, please be cautious of what you speak, we are recording the stuff. Many political leaders have Pegasus Spyware on their Phone. Unnecessary cases are registered against us: Rahul Gandhi in Cambridge pic.twitter.com/EBXX7p1s20 — Megh Updates  (@MeghUpdates) March 3, 2023

Last August, a committee appointed by the Supreme Court was tasked with investigating claims that the Indian government had used Pegasus spyware to spy on people. The committee found that while no evidence of Pegasus was discovered on 29 mobile phones that were examined, the malware was detected on five of them. However, the committee stated that it could not definitively confirm that Pegasus was responsible.

Rahul Gandhi also alleged that the Indian government was imposing restrictions on Parliament, the press, and the judiciary, which was putting a strain on Indian democracy. As an opposition leader, he was concerned about the limitations being placed on democratic institutions and the freedom of movement in the country.