New Delhi: After reports of Chinese surveillance on 10,000 Indians including the President and Prime Minister, the Congress on Monday demanded that the Centre take strict action and assure the Parliament that no "sensitive information" of India has been misused by China.
Addressing the media, Congress MP and deputy leader in Lok Sabha, Gaurav Gogoi said, "The Government of India should not be caught sleepy. They should be aware of and ramp up their efforts. In the days to come, the government should be clear and assure us that all the data collected by Chinese agencies have not been used to manipulate policy, to gain more intelligence data on our military or on sensitive information."
Speaking to ETV Bharat, K Suresh said, "This is a very serious matter. On one side, Chinese incursion is going on and on the other side, they are collecting the data of more than 10,000 prominent people of our country. They are encroaching everywhere."
Congress MPs K Suresh and Adhir Ranjan Choudhary had also given adjournment motion notice in Lok Sabha over the Chinese incursion in eastern Ladakh.
As per the investigative report, a Shenzen-based technology company with links to the Chinese government and Chinese Communist Party is monitoring over 10,000 individuals and organisations of India, including the President, Prime Minister, key opposition leaders, Cabinet Ministers, Chief Ministers, and the Chief Justice of India among others.
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"We want the Government of India to step up its efforts on cybersecurity because when we confront a country like China, we are not confronting it only on land, sea, and air, but we are confronting Chinese intentions in the cyberspace as well," said Gaurav Gogoi.
When asked about the Congress' stand on the matter and whether the opposition party is planning to raise this issue in Parliament, K Suresh replied, "If this report is correct, Government of India should summon Chinese Ambassador in Delhi, to ask about the details. The government must also clear about this report in the House."
"Tomorrow is a Defence Advisory Committee meeting, convened by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla. So, the opposition parties, including Congress, will surely raise this issue," he added.
Earlier today, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala also questioned the Central Government as to why the Indian agencies failed to know about the surveillance.
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"If this report is true, then a) was the Modi Government aware of this serious case? Or they didn't know that there were being spied upon? b) Why is the Government failing to protect our borders over and over again? c) a clear message needs to be sent out to China to prevent them from indulging in such activities," he tweeted.
In another tweet, he said, "We condemn this unequivocally. Have the Chinese used this 2-year-old company to influence government policies in any manner? Will the government investigate and assure the nation?"
