India summons top US diplomat over snooping row
India's ruling party worried by reports US intelligence was authorized to spy on it in 2010
By Mubasshir Mushtaq
NEW DELHI
Following media reports that the U.S. National Security Agency was authorized to snoop on India's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party in 2010, India has reportedly summoned the top U.S. diplomat in the country.
The Times of India reported that India is keen to lodge a complaint about "intrusion of privacy" and "unacceptable" behaviour.
There was no official confirmation about the snooping row but Foreign Ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin told reporters on Tuesday that it is “extremely disconcerting” if the media report is correct.
“At this stage I have only heard, I have not seen those reports. That said, our view is pretty clear that it is extremely disconcerting that privacy laws in India are undermined whether it is of individuals or organisations,” Akbaruddin said. “It is totally unacceptable that Indian organisations’, Indian individuals’ privacy is being transgressed upon, if that is correct.”
The timing of the reported snooping is considered curious as the BJP, now the ruling party, were politically weak in 2010.
The controversy is likely to cast a shadow over Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s official visit to the US in late September.
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