Sam Pitroda, a Congress leader, alleged that a hacker interrupted his speech during an event at IIT Roorkee on February 1, streaming inappropriate content shortly after his presentation. He emphasized the importance of cyber safety in academic settings. This claim followed a controversy regarding his previous assertion that he spoke at “IIT Ranchi,” which the Ministry of Education dismissed, stating no such institute exists and that he was never invited to any event. The ministry labeled his initial remarks “baseless” and “ignorant,” indicating that the Indian Institute of Information Technology in Ranchi had not hosted him.
New Delhi:
Following the Centre’s dismissal of Congress leader Sam Pitroda’s remarks regarding an inappropriate video being shown during his webcast with “IIT Ranchi students,” Mr. Pitroda made a similar assertion about IIT Roorkee.
In a post on X (previously Twitter), Mr. Pitroda stated that he was invited to speak at IIT Roorkee for an event on February 1 via a Zoom link, which was attended by students and faculty members.
“Regrettably, just minutes after my speech, a hacker breached the video link and commenced streaming explicit, inappropriate content. We acted swiftly to shut down the video and concluded the event,” Mr. Pitroda shared. “It is profoundly troubling that such occurrences take place, especially in educational settings designed for learning and development. Cyber security is a significant issue, serving as a critical reminder of the necessity for digital safety and vigilance.”
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…
— Sam Pitroda (@sampitroda) February 27, 2025
Mr. Pitroda’s comments came a day after the Centre rebutted his assertions, labeling his initial claims about speaking at “IIT Ranchi” as factually incorrect. Late on Wednesday, the Ministry of Education released a statement refuting Mr. Pitroda’s claims.
“It is clarified that there is no IIT in Ranchi. Thus, the statement made in that video is not only unfounded but also exhibits a lack of understanding,” the ministry stated.
The ministry added that although there is an Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) in Ranchi, the institute confirmed that it has never invited Mr. Pitroda to any conference or seminar, either in person or virtually.
This controversy began when Mr. Pitroda, during a podcast shared on X on February 22, mentioned that he had addressed students at IIT Ranchi when the session was hacked and explicit content was displayed.
“Recently, I was speaking at Ranchi IIT to several hundred students… and someone hacked in and started showing pornography,” he confessed in the video.
The Centre quickly flagged this claim as erroneous, highlighting that no IIT exists in Ranchi, and no official invitation had been extended to Mr. Pitroda.