 "Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal")
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday stirred up a controversy by claiming that there was a "widespread fear" about phones of judges being tapped.
Addressing the golden jubilee celebrations of the Delhi High Court, Kejriwal claimed that during his meetings with judges he had "overheard them telling each other that they should not talk on phones because those could be tapped".
He said when he told them the phones of judges would not be tapped, "they retorted by saying that all phones could be tapped... I don't know whether it is true or not but there is a widespread fear. If it is true that phones are tapped, judges can be influenced...".
Kejriwal added, "There are many other ways to gather evidence for wrongdoing, otherwise it will be the biggest assault on the independence of the judiciary."
Kejriwal made remarks in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Justice TS Thakur and Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad.
The government was quick to deny the allegations.
Prasad said, "I deny with all authority at command the allegations that phones of judges have been tapped."
The law minister said right from the prime minister to other ministers and the government, all had fought for the independence of judiciary and individual liberty and freedom of the media during the Emergency.
"Independence of judiciary is fundamental, impeachable and uncompromising for the government," he said.
Later, Home Minister Rajnath Singh also strongly denied Kejriwal's allegations as "baseless and unfounded".
"The Ministry of Home Affairs strongly denies media reports alleging tapping of telephones of some judges. There is no truth in these reports. These reports are baseless and unfounded," Kuldeep Singh Dhatwalia, spokesperson in the ministry, said in a statement.
On Tuesday, senior advocate KTS Tulsi asked Kejriwal to produce evidence to authenticate his allegation that the phones of judges were being tapped.
Tulsi said the Aam Aadmi Party chief should apologise for blaming the authorities if he was unable to provide any material to support his allegation.
"If Mr Kejriwal has any evidence, he should bring it out. Otherwise, how can he make such an allegation in front of the prime minister and the chief justice of India? There should be a certain sense of responsibility. And if he does have any evidence, he should make it public. Otherwise, the communications minister, as well as the home ministry has completely denied the charge," he said.
The Congress also urged Kejriwal to produce evidence to substantiate his allegations.
Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi said: "If true, the charges are very serious. It becomes more serious because it comes from a constitutional functionary such as the chief minister. Unless he produces some evidence for this blanket statement, I would not make any allegations. Mr Kejriwal is obligated to produce some material."
