Dilli is wondering what interest a former director of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) could have in an Indian scam, even if it is of gargantuan proportions
Dilli is wondering what interest a former director of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) could have in an Indian scam, even if it is of gargantuan proportions. But apparently former FBI chide Louis Freeh, now a lawyer, helped set up a meeting for CBI sleuths with NRI businessman C Shivasankaran, who may yet play a crucial role in the 2G investigations.
Meanwhile, senior cops and CBI officials flocked to the capital to hear Lord Ian Blair, former commissioner of Metropolitan Police, London, lecture them on counter terrorism and other pressing police matters.
So what gives? With all manner of spooks and sleuths flowing though Dilli, it does appear that India's security concerns have now become the concerns of the world at large. But will this concern be reflected in real-time cooperation in combating terrorism or merely more lectures from our Western "allies" remains to be seen.
Nothing personalDilli may be obsessing over civil society interventions, but in cyberspace the mood is somber. It's not that netizens are immune to politics, but they are more worried about the new threat to their freedom of speech.
The updated rules under the IT Amendment Act have sparked off a fierce debate since many cyber activists, internet users, legal experts and even service providers like Google and Facebook fear that Big Brother is growing too big. The government, meanwhile, is defending its right to access personal data of internet users.
Interestingly, privacy or the lack of it has been hogging headlines in the "real" world. We've witnessed mighty corporate czars and seedy politicians worrying about the invasion of their privacy through the release of tapped phone conversations. But clearly the nation has bigger worries than the invasion of privacy of individuals like a Tata or an Amar Singh. It's an issue that is going to be around a long time.
