Mumbai: NCP(SP) Chief Spokesman, Mahesh Tapase, has raised serious concerns over the potential surveillance of party MP Supriya Sule by certain agencies.
In a statement released on Wednesday, Tapase alleged that Sule, who has recently emerged victorious in a hard-fought electoral battle, might be under the watch of government agencies.
Sule recently said that her husband got an Income Tax Department notice after she questioned the government during the parliamentary Budget Session.
Tapase accused the BJP of resorting to desperate measures to undermine Sule after failing to defeat her electorally.
“The BJP, which was determined to defeat Supriya Sule, finds itself in an uncomfortable position after her electoral success. In an attempt to weaken our party, they engineered a split in the NCP by luring Ajit Pawar to their side,” Tapase said.
The NCP Spokesperson further expressed concern over the possibility of the Pegasus spyware being used to monitor the movements of Opposition leaders ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly elections.
“The BJP is known for keeping tabs on its political opponents and allegations of such nature have been made in the past. We fear that the Pegasus spyware may be used to track the movements of Opposition leaders, including Supriya Sule, in the run-up to the Maharashtra Assembly elections,” Tapase stated.
In light of these allegations, Tapase has demanded that the Maharashtra Home Department issue an immediate clarification regarding any such surveillance activities.
“It is imperative that the Maharashtra Home Ministry clarify whether any surveillance is being conducted on Supriya Sule, Uddhav Thackeray, Jayant Patil, Nana Patole or any other Opposition leaders. Such actions, if true, would be a grave violation of democratic principles,” he added.