Four Army military intelligence officers have filed a petition with the Supreme Court, alleging violations of privacy and due process after being suspended and their mobile phones and laptops seized during an investigation into the presence of an alleged Pakistani intelligence officer (PIO) in a WhatsApp group. During the inquiry, the four policemen were suspended from their positions. The plea, however, alleges that no proof exists that any of these officers engaged with the purported PIO or were even aware of his existence in the WhatsApp group.
The employees were suspended because they were members of a WhatsApp group with ‘unverified foreign nationals,’ as well as a WhatsApp group that engaged in immoral, unethical (sexual misbehaviour) activities. According to the petition filed by barrister and former JAG officer Col Amit Kumar, the board of officers investigating the purported WhatsApp group took the four officers’ personal cellphones without issuing a seizure order or convening a formal Court of Inquiry.
The officers have appealed the suspension orders, claiming that they were not members of any such WhatsApp group and had fully cooperated with the inquiry into suspicions of espionage. They have also claimed that the Board of Officials, which is investigating the matter, has the authority to suspend any officers and only has limited administrative investigation powers. The officers’ suspension and the restoration of the ‘digital assets’ taken by the board of officers were contested in court. Furthermore, it has requested that any investigation report not be made public.
According to Col Kumar, who spoke to India Today, computers and phones belonging to the officers’ children were also taken without any notice or procedure. ‘ While national security is vital, we want to guarantee that the officers’ privacy and discussions with their families and friends are kept secret. The primary question is whether Army commanders enjoy the same fundamental rights as civilian people granted by the Constitution ‘,Kumar said. This petition was filed with the Supreme Court on Friday and will most likely be heard by July 14.
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