'Was invited to speak at IIT Roorkee': Sam Pitroda after Centre dismissed hacking claims

NEW DELHI:

Indian Overseas Congress

chief

Sam Pitroda

on Thursday clarified that he was invited to speak at an IIT-Roorkee event via video link when, shortly after his speech, a

hacker

allegedly infiltrated the session and streamed

explicit content

. His statement came after the

Union ministry of education

(MoE) denied his earlier claim that objectionable content was played during his virtual interaction with students at "IIT-Ranchi."
The MoE clarified on Wednesday that there is no IIT in Ranchi and called Pitroda’s statement "baseless." It noted that while there is an Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) in Ranchi, the institute confirmed that Pitroda had not been invited to any event, either in person or virtually.

Following this, Pitroda posted on X, saying, "I was invited to speak at

IIT Roorkee

@iitroorkee during the Cognizant event on February 1, 2025, via Zoom with students and faculty."

"Unfortunately, just minutes after my speech, a hacker infiltrated the video link and began streaming explicit, inappropriate content. We immediately shut down the video and ended the event," he said.
Pitroda described the incident as concerning, especially in an academic setting, and emphasized the need for strong

cybersecurity

measures.
The MoE had earlier said that Pitroda, during a webcast on February 22, claimed he was speaking at IIT-Ranchi when the session was hacked, disrupting the event with objectionable content.
The ministry warned that any attempt to harm the reputation of a premier institution would have legal consequences.
"Such a reckless statement seems to be an attempt to malign the image of an extremely reputed institution of the country. This institution has stood the test of time and produced some of the brightest minds in the country.
"Unlike such an uninformed person, the IITs' reputation is built on the merit, hard work and achievement of many students, teachers and academia," the ministry said.