AAP condemns denial of asylum to Snowden by India

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Wednesday condemned the central government for denying asylum to fugitive former CIA agent Edward Snowden who blew the whistle on US data mining.

"The Aam Aadmi Party condemns these cowardly acts of our government and demands that as a country governed by a constitution which protects civil liberties, and committed to protecting whistleblowers, the government must stand up to the US and offer political asylum to Snowden," the AAP said in a statement.

Snowden, who is holed up in the transit lounge at Moscow airport, has sought asylum from 21 countries including India. His US passport has been revoked.

"Instead of honouring this hero as a whistleblower who has alerted us all to this massive violation of citizen's as well as the national rights of all countries, including India, our government has meekly capitulated to US pressure and refused asylum to Snowden with great alacrity," the AAP said.

The party also attacked External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid for "justifying" the US government's global eavesdropping and surveillance programme, codenamed Prism.

"The thin veneer of justification offered that such massive surveillance was used to prevent terrorist attacks is absurd in the light of the fact that there is no single terrorist attack which has been shown to have been prevented by such surveillance," it said.