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HC rejects plea challenging govt's power on telephone tapping

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Press Trust of India New Delhi
Last Updated : Jan 20 2013 | 6:29 AM IST

A bench of justices B D Ahmed and Veena Birbal said the Supreme Court had also dealt with the issue of admissibility of materials collected against an accused after intercepting his telephonic conversations.

The apex court had already decided the issue of privacy of a person and telephone tapping under the Telegraph Act, the bench said, dismissing the plea of a DDA land scam accused to strike down the provisions pertaining to the government's power to intercept the telephonic conversations.

"A contemporaneous tape record of a relevant conversation was relevant fact and was admissible. The Supreme Court clearly held that the noncompliance or inadequate compliance with the provisions of the said Act did not per se affect the admissibility," the bench said dismissing plea of Dharamvir Khattar, facing trial in the DDA land scam.

The bench also rejected his plea to quash the seven interception orders passed by the Union home ministry against him under Section 5(2) of the Telegraph Act.

The court in its 52-page judgement said, "Without going into the issue of whether there was non-compliance of the provisions of Section 5(2) of the Telegraph Act or of Rule 419-A, it is clear that even if there was, in fact, no compliance, the evidence gathered thereupon would still be admissible. This is the clear position settled by the Supreme Court and, therefore, no further question of law arises on this aspect of the matter." (More)

  

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First Published: Nov 21 2012 | 8:25 PM IST

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