New Delhi:
National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) is a technical organisation of the government and I make this statement on the behalf of the government. A group of ministers had recommended that such an organisation be set up. The organisation was notified on April 15 2004. Government had seen the allegations against the NTRO contained in a story in Outlook magazine for April 2010. I wish to state categorically that no telephone tapping or eavesdropping on political leaders was authorised by the previous UPA government nor has the present UPA government authorised any such activity.
After the issue of the magazine was available mid Friday, April 23, 2010 the allegations in the story were thoroughly enquiring to. Nothing has been found in the records of the NTRO or elsewhere to substantiate the allegations. All intelligence agencies function within the law. They are fully responsible to the government under the telegraph act and the information technology act, each case of monitoring of telephone or electronic communication has to be approved by the Union Home Secretary personally and is subject to review by an overset commission chaired by the cabinet secretary.
Such monitoring has been necessary to fight crime, for national security or for our counter terrorism efforts, is subject to multiple checks and oversight. Both this government and the previous UPA government have respected and upheld the laws of the land. We are committed to defending the right of every Indian citizen including the right to privacy and we uphold the rights of t he Indian citizens as in the constitution of India. Further enquiries are being into the allegations in the magazine if any element is forthcoming or discovered, the matter will be thoroughly investigated by the appropriate agencies.