No new powers to security, law enforcement agencies: MHA on computer surveillance
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The Ministry of Home Affairs on Friday issued a statement clarifying that the order does not confer any new powers to any of the security or law enforcement agencies. "Each case of interception, monitoring, decryption is to be approved by the competent authority i.e. Union Home Secretary," the statement added.
"Rule 4 of IT (Procedure & Safeguards for Interception, Monitoring & Decryption of Info) Rules'09 provides that ‘the authority may authorise a government agency to intercept, monitor or decrypt info generated, transmitted or stored in any computer for a purpose specified in the Act," the statement added.
Meanwhile, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad defended Home Ministry's move to allow 10 agencies to monitor any computer resource. The minister stated that the move has been carried out in national security interest.
"This has been done in national security interest. It has been done under the law made by the Manmohan Singh govt in 2009. Each case of interception and the decision is to be approved by Union Home Secy," Prasad stated.
Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, earlier in the day, said that the order came into existence after Congress party-led Opposition joined hands on to oppose the government's move to authorise 10 Central agencies to intercept "any information" on computers.
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Jaitley was responding to former Union minister Anand Sharma's remark which noted that the BJP government is converting India into a surveillance state through its recent order.
The Centre on Friday authorised select security and intelligence agencies for purposes of interception, monitoring and decryption of any information generated, transmitted, received or stored in any computer resource.
The agencies empowered by the government in accordance with the Information Technology Act, 2000, include the Intelligence Bureau (IB), Narcotics Control Bureau (NIB), Enforcement Directorate (ED), Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), National Investigation Agency (NIA), Cabinet Secretariat (RAW) and the Commissioner of Police, Delhi, news agency PTI reported.
(With inputs from agencies)