India’s parliament opened amid a political storm over fresh allegations that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government bought Israeli-made Pegasus spyware to snoop on its critics.
The New York Times reported on Friday that India acquired Pegasus from Israel as part of a defence deal in 2017.
Similar allegations emerged last year, and the government had denied them.
Opposition parties are now accusing the government of lying to parliament and misleading the house.
The main opposition Congress has called for a “privilege motion” in parliament – used in instances when members are accused of committing a breach of privilege – against information and technology minister Ashwini Vaishnaw for “deliberately misleading the House”.
