The Congress on Sunday seized upon Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s declaration that this was the best time to set new goals in the India-Israel relationship, wondering whether acquiring a more advanced version of the Pegasus spyware before the next general election could be one of them.

“The Prime Minister said that it is the best time to set new goals in the India-Israel relationship. Of course, it is the best time to ask Israel if they have any advanced version of the Pegasus spyware,” Congress veteran P. Chidambaram tweeted.

Rahul Gandhi too hit out at Modi over unemployment, tweeting how “an arrogant man sits with his eyes closed” amid rising joblessness, and sent the BJP into a lather by targeting “Hindutvawadis” in the context of Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination.

Chidambaram’s jibe comes days after The New York Times reported that India had bought the Pegasus spyware as part of a defence deal with Israel in 2017.

A panel tasked by the Supreme Court is looking into allegations that the phones of several politicians, journalists and at least one judge were on a list of potential targets to be hacked with Pegasus.

Following the NYT report, the Congress has accused the government of “treason” and asked the Supreme Court to take suo motu notice of the new development and initiate proceedings against the Centre.

Chidambaram added: “The last deal was for 2 billion dollars. India can do better this time. If we get more sophisticated spyware ahead of the 2024 elections, we can give them even 4 billion dollars.”

Modi has chosen silence on the controversy while saying there cannot be a better time to set new goals for taking the India-Israel relations forward.

While minister and former army chief V.K. Singh questioned the credibility of the NYT on Saturday, defence minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday hid behind the plea of the Supreme Court-monitored inquiry.

Chidambaram tweeted: “Minister VK Singh has called the New York Times ‘supari (mercenary) media’. Was he not the one who called Indian media ‘presstitutes’?”

He added: “I wonder if he has ever read newspapers like the New York Times or Washington Post. I doubt if he knows the role played by the two newspapers in exposing the Watergate scandal and the Pentagon Papers. If he does not wish to read history, he can at least watch the movies!”

The Congress had identified a host of issues to corner the government during Parliament’s budget session, which begins on Monday, but Pegasus now tops the agenda.

Most Congress strategists believe the debate on the motion of thanks to the President’s address should be used in both Houses to corner the government for allegedly buying the spyware to snoop on Indian citizens.

The Congress doesn’t want to use disruptive methods as the upcoming session has to clear the essential business of passing the budget. Besides, the government wouldn’t mind too much if pressing issues are not debated in Parliament at a time the campaigning for key Assembly elections is about to peak.

The debate on the motion of thanks to the President’s address allows complete freedom to the members to speak on any subject relating to governance and the nation. The Opposition appears keen on exploiting this opportunity.

The budget session will kick off with the President’s address to a joint session of Parliament on Monday, followed by the presentation of the budget on Tuesday.

Among the other issues the Opposition intends to raise are: the new IAS rules that have made many states unhappy, the agrarian distress, unemployment, Chinese hostility, the rising income disparity and the sale of national assets to “crony capitalists”.

On Sunday, the BJP chose to ignore the attacks on Pegasus and unemployment while kicking up a ruckus over Rahul’s barb at Hindutvawadis on Mahatma Gandhi’s death anniversary.

“Ek Hindutvawadi ne Gandhiji ko goli maari thi. Sab Hindutvawadiyon ko lagta hai Gandhiji nahin rahe. Jahan satya hai, wahan aaj bhi Bapu zinda hain (One follower of Hindutva shot Gandhi. All followers of Hindutva feel that Gandhi is no more. Gandhi is alive wherever there is truth),” Rahul had tweeted.

BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said it was beyond comprehension why Rahul enjoyed attacking Hindutva. Several news channels conducted debates on the tweet, wondering whether Rahul’s strategy of attacking Hindutva would pay the Congress electoral dividends.

Rahul’s attacks on the Modi government’s silence on the Chinese intrusion, Pegasus, unemployment and other national concerns rarely trigger such debates.