A(NOTHER) PIECE OF THE PUZZLE

📲 WHAT: A phone belonging to activist Rona Wilson, one of the accused in the Bhima Koregaon case, was infected with Pegasus three months before his arrest in June 2018, a forensic analysis of the device by Amnesty International has revealed.

🇮🇱 WHAT'S PEGASUS: A spyware sold by NSO, an Israeli company that claims it only sells its products to 'vetted government clients' who want to monitor security threats.

🔍 In July, a global investigation involving 17 news organisations found that Pegasus was allegedly used to spy on heads of states, activists and journalists in several countries. The result of the exposé was a list of potential targets of cyber surveillance through Pegasus.

⭕️ FULL CIRCLE: Wilson’s phone number was on the list. As were numbers of eight others accused in the Brim Koregaon case + their colleagues, relatives and lawyers.

1️⃣ NOT A FIRST: Pegasus was in the news in 2019 when University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab found that it was used hack into phones of 121 Indians.

2️⃣ Several reports over the past two years by a US-based digital forensics firm named Arsenal Consulting revealed that malware was used to surveil and plant evidence on the computers of two of the accused in the Bhima Koregaon case—one being Wilson.

👉 WHAT NOW: The National Investigation Agency says Arsenal Consulting et al have no stand to comment on the case and so their findings will not be considered for bail or otherwise.

👉The trial in the 2018 case is yet to begin.

A MURKY TIMELINE

📫 Nov 15: Law Ministry sends the Election Commission (EC) a letter saying the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) wants a meeting on electoral reforms and “expects the Chief Election Commissioner” (CEC) to be present, The Indian Express reports.

✉️ Sources tell TIE that the CEC made his "displeasure" known about the letter and informed the Law Ministry he will not be in attendance at the meeting.

💻 Nov 16: The CEC skips the video meeting, but juniors from the EC attend it.

😶 Nov 16: After the scheduled meeting finishes, CEC Sushil Chandra and the two Election Commissioners, Rajiv Kumar and Anup Chandra Pandey, join an online “interaction” with the Principal Secretary to PM P K Mishra.

💬 ON THE RECORD: "This is atrocious...any interaction between the EC and the government is bound to raise suspicion."—Former CEC S Y Quaraishi to TIE

🙃 FYI: Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Punjab and Manipur will go to polls next year. Dates are to be announced soon.

NEVER SAY NEVER

👉 WHAT: The Punjab Lok Congress, founded by Amarinder Singh in November 2021 after he quit the Congress, has announced an alliance with the BJP for the upcoming Punjab elections.

💬 SINGH SAYS: "The alliance will definitely, 101% win the elections."

👉 WHAT NOW: Seat-sharing is being decided.
💬 FYI: "I will not join BJP (but) I will not stay in the Congress party."—Singh on September 30.

NO DATA, NO DEATHS, NO PROBLEM: Recent replies by governments

WHAT RAPE CULTURE LOOKS LIKE

😶 FYI: This is Mr Ramesh Kumar's (not-an-apology) apology: "If… the statements I made in the house, if any sections of the society, including women especially if they are hurt, I have no embarrassment to express my regret."