SC junks plea seeking probe into China's alleged surveillance on President, PM, judges

The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to pass any order on a plea seeking directions to the Central government to investigate China's alleged surveillance on the President of India, Prime Minister, judges (sitting and retired) of the apex court and High Court and other influential personalities.

A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India SA Bobde, while disposing of the plea, asked the petitioner to file a representation before the Centre saying "these are sensitive matter, make a representation to the Home Ministry or Finance Ministry".

The Bench allowed the petitioner to file a representation before the government.

Save Them India Foundation, an NGO, filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL), seeking directions to register an FIR for cyber terrorism and cybercrime under several relevant sections of the Information and Technology Act 2000 and the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The plea sought directions to ban Chinese-operated digital money lending apps in India and to take actions against the Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFC) and digital money lending apps acting contrary to the fair practice code.

It further sought that there should be a direction to the Union of India to enact the Draft Bill "The Protection of Personal Data, 2019".

The plea said that China not only through one mode but by the other modes like money lending apps extracted data of Indian citizens and storing there in its country. This could have a disastrous effect in the future and is a threat and danger to our national security and integrity, it added.

It alleged that the privacy of citizens, the secrecy of judges, the President of India, the Prime Minister and other thousands of authorities has become a play for China.

"China's espionage system and spying upon India has developed a new threat and fear of losing our secret valuable information, public policies, defence policies, data hijacking and theft," the plea said.