Opposition stalling Parliament over non-issue: Joshi on Pegasus row

Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said that opposition parties are stalling the functioning of Parliament over the Pegasus row, which he termed a non-issue.

Speaking to media persons on Saturday, he said that Israeli cybersecurity firm NSO Group has distanced themselves from the ‘alleged leaked list’ and the government has made it clear that snooping is not such an easy task and there are set rules for tapping somebody’s phone. In spite of this, the opposition parties are not allowing Parliament to function, as they do not have any other issues to rake.

“Tell us one reason as to why an inquiry into the baseless snooping charges should be held,” he said.

Joshi asked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to read the entire articles on Pegasus row and understand that the mere presence of a name in a list does not amount to ‘spying’. “The Wire, which broke these stories itself has made it clear on the issue; the opposition and Rahul Gandhi has to read the articles completely,” he said and added that if Rahul Gandhi still feels that his phone is ‘tapped’, he should file a police complaint and submit his phone for forensic testing.

Condemning the behaviour of opposition leaders, Joshi reiterated that government is willing to discuss any issue, including Pegasus, in the Parliament. However, for that, the opposition leaders should allow the House to function.

When Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley were ‘stalling’ the parliament, the then opposition leaders had an issue of coal scam, 2G, Commonwealth Games and others. However, today as the opposition has no issues against the Modi government they are racking up a non-issue and stalling the house. “This is not a way for the opposition to behave,” he said.

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