‘Phones of many opposition leaders being tapped’: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Arvind Sawant backs Rahul Gandhi's allegations

The statement came after Gandhi levelled serious allegations of him being surveilled by the Central government, alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is having his phone tapped, while once again calling for the Prime Minister to agree to an open debate against him.

Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Arvind Sawant on Friday backed Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha (LoP) Rahul Gandhi's allegations of phone tapping, saying concerns raised by opposition leaders over the issue must be taken seriously. Speaking to ANI, Sawant claimed that phones of several opposition leaders were being tapped and accused the government of keeping watch on them.

"If opposition leaders are raising this issue, it will have to be taken seriously. Many of our leaders’ phones are being tapped... This government is all about doing wrong instead of doing good. They keep watch; let them," he said. The statement came after Gandhi levelled serious allegations of him being surveilled by the central government, alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is having his phone tapped, while once again calling for the Prime Minister to agree to an open debate against him.

"The Prime Minister is aware of this because he has my phone tapped. The day he agrees to a face-to-face debate, everyone will learn who is under the control of foreign powers, who is anti-national, and how long they have been involved in anti-national activities," Rahul Gandhi said in a video posted by Congress on X. The LoP in Lok Sabha has said the proof of PM Modi being under the control of "foreign powers" is already on his phone, and as such, the PM already knows what the proof is.

Meanwhile, Gandhi's allegations of phone tapping have triggered a fresh political confrontation between his party and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), with opposition leaders accusing the ruling establishment of targeting political opponents through surveillance, while BJP leaders dismissed the charges as baseless and questioned the Congress leader's credibility. The allegations have brought together a series of sharp reactions from leaders across the political spectrum, with Congress leaders expressing support for Rahul Gandhi and demanding an explanation from the government, while the BJP countered that the claims lacked evidence and accused the LoP of making repeated unsubstantiated allegations.

Backing Rahul Gandhi's claims, Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge said the Congress leader had not made allegations without documents and referred to the Pegasus controversy to question the possibility of surveillance targeting opposition leaders. "Rahul Gandhi has never made an allegation without documents. If he's made the claim, it is true because earlier also you heard about the Pegasus case. And Pegasus was first used on PM Modi's cabinet colleagues, as reports said. So, when a person can use a sister spyware like Pegasus on his own colleagues, won't he be using it for opposition leaders?... " Kharge said.

Congress leader Ajay Rai also accused the BJP government of targeting Rahul Gandhi and monitoring the phones of opposition leaders, claiming that the alleged surveillance had been taking place for some time. "It is clear that those in the BJP government are completely rattled...He is also resorting to phone tapping; our leader, Rahul Gandhi, is being targeted, and our phones are being tapped—this has been going on for some time...They are clearly terrified. As our leader, Rahul Gandhi, continues to grow closer to the common people, Mr Modi has completely panicked; he is now in no position to provide any answers..." Rai said. (ANI)