The ruling Shiv Sena on Thursday heaped wholesome praise on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for setting up a commission of inquiry into the Pegasus snoopgate, by saying that she had done what the Centre should have done.
“The people in the country should henceforth look at Pegasus as they currently look at the CBI, Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Income Tax department. This is because the Indian Government is handling Pegasus in a patronising manner. Mamata Banerjee has taken a daring step of setting up a Commission of Inquiry into the Pegasus snoopgate. She has done what the Centre should have done,” the Sena said in its official mouth-piece “Saamana”.
“She once fought like a tigress and won (against the BJP in the West Bengal elections). It is the duty of the chief minister of a state to protect the citizens’ right. Mamata Banerjee has done to awaken the Chief Ministers of various states,” the editorial stated.
The Sena mouth-piece pointed out that the Pegasus snooping is an attack on the freedom of trhe Indian citizens. It is betrayal of the people. We expected the Centre to take serious cognisance of the Pegasus snooping and take stern action against the Israel-based NSO group. But, since the Centre did no such thing, Mamata Banerjee went ahead and set up a commission of Inquiry. She has in the firsrt Chief Minister to do so.
“What the Centre has done is to shriek its responsibility by saying that there is no truth in allegation that Pegasus spied on a whole lot of people.... France which is supplying Rafale fighter jets, has ordered an impartial inquiry into the Pegasus snoopgate. We bought Rafale fighter jets from France but we have not learnt the need for ordering an impartial probe into the Pegasus snoopgate,” the Saamana editorial said.
The Sena said that keeping an eye on ministers, Opposition, judiciary, journalists, lawyers and other citizens to encroach on their private lives was not only a shameless move but a crime.
“This entire matter is related to the country’s national security since only a handful of organisations like IB, RAW, CBI, ED, NCB, CBDC, etc are involved in such acts… Now, if an Israeli agency like Pegasus enters the scene, then it can undermine the country’s security, but the Centre seems to be giving it a ‘national shelter’. The nation deserves to know the truth,” the editorial stated.
The Sena said that while the Government was not prepared to order an inquiry into the Pegasus snoopgate, the Opposition was not prepared to stop disturbances in Parliament. “If the Government does not want a debate on an issue that is inconvenient to it, then the matter should be seen as a threat to democracy,” the Saamana editorial stated.
The Saamana editorial should be seen in the context of a demand made by Maharashtra Congress President Nana Patole and party MP Suresh Balubhau Dhanorkar that the Maharashtra government set up a commission of inquiry headed by a retired high court judge to go into the Pegasus snoopgate.