Stop airing/publishing recorded tapes: SC

blishing recorded tapes: SCPress Trust of India / New Delhi February 27, 2006

The Supreme Court today restrained the electronic and the print media from broadcasting and publishing the contents of illegally tapped conversation of anyone including that of Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh.

A bench, headed by Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal, said: "Having regard to the fact and circumstances of the case, we direct the electronic and print media would not publish/display the unauthorised/illegal telephone tapping of any person till the matter is further heard and guidelines issued by this court."

The bench also issued notices to MTNL, BSNL, VSNL, Reliance Infocomm, Idea Cellular, Tata Indicom, Bharti Tele-Ventures and Hutichson Essar.

The court deleted the name of the Congress (through its president) as a party in the matter.

The court also directed the centre and Delhi government to furnish the details of the number of telephones tapped and the number of telephones for which authorisation could not be issued in the stipulated time for being tapped within two weeks, and posted the matter for further hearing on March 20.