US allowed NSA to snoop on BJP

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was one of the six political parties of the world that the US government allowed its National Security Agency (NSA) to spy upon, according to classified documents leaked by whistleblower Edward Snowden.

  

“The Washington Post” newspaper cited the documents provided to it by Snowden to claim that the US government had in 2010 authorised the NSA to carry out surveillance on the BJP of India, Muslim Brotherhood and National Salvation Front of Egypt, Amal Movement of Lebanon, Bolivarian Continental Coordinator of Venezuela and Pakistan People’s Party of Pakistan.

The revelation upset not only the ruling BJP, but also Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, as it came ahead of US Secretary of State John Kerry’s first visit to India after the change of regime in New Delhi.

The government strongly reacted to the revelation, terming “The Washington Post” report as “extremely disconcerting”.

The Ministry of External Affairs said that it was “totally unacceptable”, if the privacy of any individual or organisation had been “transgressed upon” in violation of the laws of India. 

MEA spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said that New Delhi had taken up the issue with Washington in the past, and would do so again in future after examining the reports.


Kerry’s visit is also intended to prepare the ground for a meeting between Modi and US President Barrack Obama during the new Prime Minister’s proposed visit to Washington post a New York tour this September to attend the United Nations General Assembly.

US Senator John McCain is also expected to arrive in New Delhi on Wednesday.

A party leader, however, said that the Obama administration has always been apprehensive about the BJP. Even in 1998 they were ill at ease with the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government’s approach to nuclear issues and Indo-US relations.

On the first count, their concerns were genuine since India carried out nuclear tests without taking Washington into confidence.

Asked what prompted the NSA to spy on the BJP, a party source said four years back the anti-corruption movement led by Anna Hazare had just begun and the party took a pro-active stand, which could have caught their attention. 

But, sources said that the real reason will have to be ascertained by the government since it is important for the ruling party to find out why the US was snooping on them.