Margaret Alva, the opposition’s vice presidential candidate, said she was unable to make or receive calls from her mobile phone and, in a lighthearted comment, promised government-owned telecom operator MTNL that she would not call any MP from the BJP, TMC, or BJD tonight if her phone was restored.
“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,” Alva wrote in a tweet addressed to service provider Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited. “If you (MTNL) restore the phone. I promise not to call any MP from the BJP, TMC (Trinamool Congress) or BJD (Biju Janata Dal) tonight.”
Dear BSNL/ MTNL,
After speaking to some friends in the BJP today, all calls to my mobile are being diverted & 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.
Margaret
Ps. You need my KYC now? pic.twitter.com/Ps9VxlGNnh
— Margaret Alva (@alva_margaret) July 25, 2022
However, on July 19 itself, the Delhi Police warned customers of a cyber fraud carried out in the name of MTNL. It revealed that miscreants send WhatsApp messages such as “Dear customer, your MTNL Sim Card Aadhaar e-KYC has been suspended. Your SIM card will be blocked within 24 hours. Call immediately” to retrieve confidential information of the customers.
Beware❗️
There is a sharp spike in fraudulent incidents wherein @MTNLOfficial’s name & logo are being used to commit cyber fraud. Mobile customers receive WhatsApp messages from miscreants on the pretext of KYC updation to retrieve confidential information.@DCP_CCC_Delhi pic.twitter.com/j7HFOVCbxZ
— Delhi Police (@DelhiPolice) July 19, 2022
Meanwhile, Margaret Alva levelled snooping charges against the Union government on Tuesday. She claimed, “The fear that ‘Big Brother’ (a reference to George Orwell’s ‘1984’) is always watching & listening permeates all conversations between politicians across party lines in ‘new’ India. MPs & leaders of parties carry multiple phones, frequently change numbers & talk in hushed whispers when they meet. Fear kills democracy”.
The fear that ‘Big Brother’ is always watching & listening permeates all conversations between politicians across party lines in ‘new’ India. MPs & leaders of parties carry multiple phones, frequently change numbers & talk in hushed whispers when they meet. Fear kills democracy.
— Margaret Alva (@alva_margaret) July 26, 2022
Vice President elections
Margaret Alva will face Natioanl Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate, former West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankar in the August 6 election whose result is foregone since the NDA has a majority of MPs in a combined count of both house of Parliament.
Of Parliament’s current strength of 780, the Bharatiya Janata Party alone has 394 MPs, more than the majority mark of 390.
