E-Paper
On Margaret Alva's phone tapping charge, Union minister Teni says this
When asked about Margaret Alva's charge that she was not being able to make or receive calls on her mobile, Ajay Mishra Teni said what was the use of snooping into her calls, adding, people talked that way when they saw no chances of victory in their contest.
Union minister of state Ajay Mishra Teni on Tuesday called allegations of phone tapping levelled by Margaret Alva, Opposition's vice presidential candidate, as a statement of a dejected person.
When asked about Alva's charge that she was not being able to make or receive calls on her mobile, Teni, a junior minister in the home department, said what was the use of snooping into her calls, adding, people talked that way when they saw no chances of victory in their contest.
“Dejected people speak things like that. What is the use of tapping her phone? There are no chances of her victory. People give such statements out of dejection,” Teni was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
A day ago, Alva urged government-owned telecom operator MTNL to restore her phone while promising not make any call to any MP from the BJP, TMC or BJD.
Taking to Twitter, Alva posted a communication from Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) which said her MTNL KYC had been suspended and her SIM card would be blocked within 24 hours.
Tagging the operator, Alva wrote, "Dear BSNL/ MTNL, After speaking to some friends in the BJP today, all calls to my mobile are being diverted and I'm unable to make or receive calls. If you restore the phone. I promise not to call any MP from the BJP, TMC or BJD tonight," she said.
“You need my KYC now,” she added.
Alva has so far reached out to a number of chief ministers, including those of Delhi, Karnataka and Assam, as part of her campaign bid.
Alva has been fielded by the Opposition against the ruling NDA's Jagdeep Dhankhar – the governor of West Bengal who resigned from the post on July 18.
The Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress, which governs West Bengal, has announced it will abstain from the election.
