Telugu Desam Party national president and former Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Monday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to initiate stern action to check the alleged phone-tapping by the ruling YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) and private persons in Andhra Pradesh.
In a letter to Mr. Modi, Mr. Naidu alleged that the ruling party had been illegally tapping the phones of any person or institution raising their voice against the government. It appeared that the YSRCP had now even targeted the judiciary as it was facing hurdles from it, he said.
“Phone-tapping can be done only in case of threat to national security or in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India, threat to friendly relations with foreign countries. Further, Section 5(2) of the Indian Telegraph Act and Section 69 of the Information Technology Act, 2000 are violated by this government as there is no reason as per the above Acts to tap the phones of leaders of opposition parties, advocates, journalists and social activists. Thus, it directly stands against Articles 19 and 21 of fundamental rights guaranteed in the Constitution, wherein the right to privacy is violated.”
Such unlawful practices by governments or private persons, if unrestrained, would lead to destruction of institutions that were built painstakingly over a period of time. Therefore, it would be appropriate to order an inquiry by a competent body of the Government of India, Mr. Naidu added.
He marked a copy of the letter to Union Minister for Communications, Electronics & Information Technology and Law and Justice Ravi Shankar Prasad.
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