From Army, BSF, RAW to Kejriwal aide and ED officer on Pegasus list, says report

New Delhi: From officers in the Indian Army, a former RAW officer and a former Border Security Chief to a senior ED officer, who handled key cases against Opposition politicians, a former aide to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, a PMO official and the current Bihar Cricket chief — the latest revelations from the reporting on The Pegasus Project by news website The Wire now show that phone numbers being used by these officials and their family members had appeared on the list of potential Pegasus targets for surveillance, at the behest of an Indian client of the NSO Group.

The latest reports showed that KK Sharma, the BSF chief in February 2018, had been selected as a potential target for surveillance. Incidentally, Sharma shot to the headlines after his appearance was noted at a little-known RSS-affiliate meeting — in uniform.

The 1982-batch IPS officer's attendance here had attracted political scorn, with the TMC registering objection publicly. Soon after Sharma retired from service, he was appointed as Special Central Police Observer in West Bengal for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, by the Election Commission.

Soon after objections by the TMC, he was replaced.

In addition, a Border Security Force Commandant, Jagdish Maithani, and Inspector General of Police, posted in Assam, also found his phone number on the list of potential Pegasus targets between 2017 and 2019.

Maithani has been known for spearheading the Ministry of Home Affairs' Comprehensive Integrated Border Management System (CIBMS), specifically for areas where physical fencing is not possible due to topographical and geographical conditions.

Along with this, The Wire on Monday reported that a former RAW officer, who used to train spies at the academy in Delhi between 2013 and 2015, was also on the list. Jitender Kumar Jha, the former RAW officer, was eased out of service by the government in January 2018 and he had challenged this in the Central Administrative Tribunal the following month. His and his wife's phone numbers were on the list. The CAT dismissed his plea and an appeal is pending in the Delhi High Court.

Moreover, the two Army officers who find mention in the list of potential targets were identified by the news portal as lawyers who had filed petitions against the government on service-related matters. One of them was Colonel Mukul Dev, who had in 2017, gained prominence for sending a legal notice to the Secretary of Defence for scrapping rations for officers posted in peace regions.

The other Indian Army officer, Colonel Amit Kumar was also from the legal division and had appeared on the list the same time as Colonel Dev in 2019.

While posted in Jammu and Kashmir in 2018, Colonel Kumar had filed a plea in the Supreme Court on behalf of over 300 Army personnel, apprehending and impending dilution of the Armed Forces (Special Forces) Act.

Meanwhile, in Delhi, DANICS and IAS officer VK Jain's name also found a mention on the list, as reported by The Wire.

His number appeared on the list in 2018, when he was Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's personal secretary and purportedly had access to several key policy files passing through the CMO.

And yet another government official on the list happened to be senior ED officer Rajeshwar Singh, who had handled key cases against Opposition politicians such as P Chidambaram. The Wire reported that two of his sisters' numbers were also on the list.

In addition to these names, The Pegasus Project revelations on Monday showed that an Under Secretary in the Prime Minister's Office was also selected as a potential target along with a former official of government think-tank NITI Aayog.

The Wire also reported that the current chief of Bihar Cricket also finds a mention in the list.

In yet another set of revelations, The Wire on Monday reported that several former corporate bigwigs, PSU chiefs and corporate bank fraud accused also find themselves on the list of potential targets. The Pegasus Project revealed that those on the list included Naresh Goyal, who is under investigation for allegedly running Jet Airways into the ground.

In addition, the report said that Aircel promoter and multi-thousand crore bank fraud accused, C Sivasankaran, and Rotomac promoter Vikram Kothari also feature on the list.

The Wire added that several industry experts working with corporates such as Adani and Essar Groups were also on the list. Their primary roles included liaisoning with the government on policy issues prickly for their corporate employers.

It added that former Life Insurance Corporation chief VK Sharma also featured on the list albiet two years after he took up the position. His number was removed shortly before he retired. Moreover, BC Tripathi, former chief of GAIL India was also on the list, added shortly after he took charge and on and off through his tenure.

Also, with Naresh Goyal, Ajay Singh, chairman and MD of SpiceJet also featured on the list of potential targets.