A bench comprising Chief Justice NV Ramana and Justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli of the Supreme Court on Friday stayed the ongoing probe by the West Bengal government-appointed commission into the Pegasus snooping allegations. The commission is headed by former Supreme Court Justice MB Lokur and includes former chief justice of Calcutta High Court Jyotirmay Bhattacharya.
The bench took note of the plea that the commission has commenced its work despite the assurance of the state government that the panel would not proceed with the inquiry.
A three-member panel of cyber experts was appointed by the Supreme Court on October 27 to probe the alleged use of Israeli spyware Pegasus for surveillance of certain people in India. The top court said that every citizen needs protection against privacy violation and mere invocation of national security by the state does not render the court a mute spectator.
Over 300 certified Indian mobile phone numbers were on the list of potential targets for surveillance using the Israeli spyware Pegasus, reported an international media consortium.