LONDON: India should give political asylum to American whistleblower Edward Snowden for exposing the US cyber snooping programme that targeted India in a big way, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange told TOI on Wednesday.

Assange, who is holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since June 19 last year, said in an exclusive interview that India was among the first countries he had approached for asylum. But he never heard back.

“I was disappointed and saddened that India, known for upholding human rights, never got back despite several requests by me for asylum. Indians are also great supporters of WikiLeaks. I therefore contacted the foreign office through the Indian high commissioner. I wrote to them but they never responded,” Assange said over telephone.

When contacted, MEA officials in New Delhi said they had no record of Assange seeking asylum in India.

The WikiLeaks founder said that if a small nation like Ecuador could have the guts to provide him asylum, India which has considerable global standing with a billion-plus population should not be afraid of “standing up for human rights” and giving Snowden asylum. “Ecuadorians showed immense courage and granted me asylum,” he added.

Assange called Snowden a hero for exposing “the most serious events of the decade” — how America was snooping into people’s emails, phone calls, messages en masse and across the globe. “It was because of Snowden that India came to know how US was snooping on them. It is an obligation for India to protect Snowden. India is a super power and does not have to fear other nations. Now is the time for India to show it stands up for human rights,” he said.

Snowden, a 29-year-old former technical assistant for CIA who later worked for the US National Security Agency through contractors, is believed to be still in Hong Kong, from where he leaked details of a top-secret US surveillance programme, Prism. Assange warned Snowden against serious witch-hunting by the US government and said he should look at getting political asylum in Latin American countries which have in the last decade been “champions of human rights”.

The Australian information activist, who is trying to avoid extradition to face “trumped up” charges of sexual offences in Sweden, said he is still willing to take asylum in India if such an offer comes.

“I have never been to India. But I have lots of friends there. WikiLeaks has a big support base in India. But the government should show more courage,” Assange said.