Two public interest litigations (PIL) were filed on Monday in the Supreme Court against the Government’s notification authorising 10 Central agencies to intercept, monitor and decrypt any computer system.
Advocates Manohar Lal Sharma and Amit Sahni filed separate pleas seeking to quash the Government’s December 20 notification that empowers 10 central probe and snoop agencies for computer interception and analysis.
Both the petitioners claimed the notification was “unconstitutional” and the “blanket surveillance” bad in law.
The 10 agencies notified under the new order are the Intelligence Bureau, Narcotics Control Bureau, Enforcement Directorate, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (for Income Tax Department), Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Central Bureau of Investigation, National Investigation Agency, the Research and Analysis Wing, Directorate of Signal Intelligence (in service areas of J-K, North East and Assam) and Delhi Police commissioner.
Sharma sought urgent listing of his plea but his request was declined by the apex court registry and he was told the petition would come up for hearing in the normal course.
Sahni, in his plea filed through advocate Preeti Singh, claimed the December 20 notification was liable to be set aside according to the mandate of the right to privacy judgement delivered by a nine-judge Constitution bench of the top court.