Congress Escalates Data War With Spying Charge on PM Modi, BJP Fires 'My Name is Rahul' Counter

New Delhi: Congress and BJP kept up attacks on each other in the ongoing data wars, with Rahul Gandhi accusing the saffron party of spying on Indians using Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s official app.

Calling Modi a “Big Boss”, Gandhi alleged that the NaMo app “secretly records audio, video and contacts” of users’ friends and families.

Gandhi’s tweet came just moments after the BJP accused the Congress of data theft through its official app. While Gandhi had accused the PM of leaking user data to American firms, BJP’s social media head Amit Malviya said the Congress was giving data to companies in Singapore.

“Hi! My name is Rahul Gandhi. I am the President of India’s oldest political party. When you sign up for our official App, I give all your data to my friends in Singapore,” Malviya tweeted along the line of Gandhi’s tweet against Modi.

In subsequent tweets, Malviya shared screenshots purportedly from the privacy policy section of Congress’ website.

“When Congress says they will share your data with like-minded groups, the implications are grave. From Maoists, stone pelters, Bharat Ke Tukde Gang, Chinese embassy to globally ‘renowned’ orgs like Cambridge Analytica, the field is extensive and wide open,” Malviya alleged.

The BJP IT cell head also took a dig at former Congress chief Sonia Gandhi. “Inspired by Sonia Gandhi’s ‘all power no accountability’ dictum, Congress will take all your data, even share it worldwide with orgs like Cambridge Analytica but will not take responsibility of it!”

Rahul Gandhi had, on Sunday, accused PM Modi of data breach via his official Narendra Modi app, taking forward the war of words between the Congress and BJP over the Facebook data mining scandal.

“Hi! My name is Narendra Modi. I am India's Prime Minister. When you sign up for my official App, I give all your data to my friends in American companies,” Gandhi tweeted.

Gandhi's tweet was referring to a claim by French researcher Elliot Alderson, who alleged that information of those who have downloaded the app was being provided to third party US company Clever Tap without the users’ consent.

The claim has escalated the slugfest between the BJP and the Congress that have accused each other of using the services of Cambridge Analytica, the UK-based company at the heart of the Facebook data mining scandal.

The BJP has alleged that Gandhi used the firm to influence Gujarat elections, while the Congress has rubbished the charge and asked if the government would lodge an FIR against Cambridge Analytica and its India partner Oveleno Business Intelligence (OBI).

Gandhi had accused the Modi government of seeking to divert attention from its past "lies" about 39 Indians killed in Iraq by “inventing” the data mining charges against the Congress.

"Problem: 39 Indians dead; Government on the mat, caught lying. Solution: Invent story on Congress and data theft. Result: Media networks bite bait; 39 Indians vanish from radar. Problem solved," Gandhi had said.

India has issued a notice to Cambridge Analytica, giving it time till March 31 to name its clients and data source. The firm is also the subject of a similar investigation in the United Kingdom and United States.