Sam Pitroda phone tapping remark: ‘PM doesn’t do it’, but says his own phone is tapped

Sam Pitroda phone tapping remarks put a senior Congress leader at odds with Rahul Gandhi on Saturday 14 November, when he said Prime Minister Narendra Modi does not personally tap phones, yet maintained that his own phone is tapped. Pitroda told NDTV that “PM doesn’t take a screwdriver and get on a computer”, The Federal and Deccan Chronicle reported.

Sam Pitroda phone tapping claim: what he said

Pitroda said he did not believe Modi personally engages in phone tapping. He then described his own situation. “My phone is tapped, my laptop is attacked, my bank accounts are under surveillance,” he said, adding that experts who examined his devices had cautioned him.

He declined to name anyone. “Somebody is doing that. I don’t know and I don’t care. I live with it. I have no issue,” Pitroda said, according to Siasat. The Federal quoted him as adding: “There are nasty people around.”

Deccan Chronicle noted it was the second time in three days that Pitroda had spoken in defence of the Prime Minister. The Federal linked the earlier controversy to a warm exchange of Diwali greetings between Pitroda and Modi on social media.

What the Leader of the Opposition alleged

Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, said in a video posted by the Congress on X that “the Prime Minister is aware of this because he taps my phone”, The Federal reported. He also asked for a one-on-one debate with Modi.

“The proof is here. It’s in this phone,” Gandhi said, according to Siasat. He said he wanted a debate because he was not allowed to speak in Parliament and his microphone was repeatedly switched off. Siasat reported that the BJP has said any exchange can take place in Parliament. Deccan Chronicle reported that the BJP rejected the allegations as baseless. NIS covered that response in its earlier report on the Rahul Gandhi phone tapping claim.

Aaditya Thackeray and other leaders react

On 15 November, Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray told reporters in Mumbai that “this whole setup and force is being used against political opponents, journalists, and all the different voices in the country”, ANI reported. He said the same intelligence network should be used against terrorists and criminals.

Congress leader Ramesh Babu said in Bengaluru that the Centre is tapping the phones of Gandhi and other Congress leaders, and challenged the BJP to order an inquiry by a sitting Supreme Court judge. “Merely issuing a statement is not the answer,” he said.

BJP MP Ravi Kishan Shukla mocked the claim in Gorakhpur, saying Gandhi’s phone was being tapped for “the formula for turning potatoes into gold”, ANI reported.

Key dates and names

• 13 November 2026: the day before Pitroda’s interview, Gandhi made the allegation, per Deccan Chronicle.
• 14 November 2026: Pitroda’s NDTV interview, published by The Federal.
• 15 November 2026: Thackeray’s remarks, per Asianet Newsable (ANI).

What happens next in the Sam Pitroda phone tapping row

None of the reports reviewed by NIS carried a response from the Prime Minister’s Office to Pitroda’s interview. The reports do not say whether Gandhi has made public the material he says is on his phone. Pitroda’s comments leave the Congress with two public lines on the issue: Gandhi names the Prime Minister, while Pitroda points to unnamed people. The Bharat Summit row that preceded the dispute is in NIS’s report on Gandhi’s speech. More national coverage is on our India page.