NEW DELHI: Rajya Sabha MP Amar Singh has said the CD of anti-corruption crusader Shanti Bhushan telling former UP chief minister that his son Prashant could manage a judge for Rs 4 crore was part of the set of his conversations that were illegally intercepted on the basis of a forged authorization letter.
"Earlier, I had only a suspicion, but the findings of a forensic investigation that I am privy to has convinced me that the CD is part of the same stash," he said.
The statement of Singh, who going by the CD arranged the conversation between Shanti Bhushan and Mulayam Singh, is significant as it can be interpreted as attesting to the authenticity of the purported conversation.
He said that he knew Shanti Bhushan, and thanked the former law minister for advising him gratis on how to save his Rajya Sabha seat after his expulsion from the Samajwadi Party. "I am thankful to him," he said.
However, the MP, till recently Mulayam Singh's chief troubleshooter, refused to comment on the veracity of the CD. "I will not like to comment because I don't wish to confer legitimacy on an illegality. Shanti Bhushan's CD is not the same as Radia tapes as the conversations of the lobbyist were intercepted lawfully. Having been a victim of illegal tapping myself, I feel obligated not to do so," said Singh who fell out with Mulayam, and has since launched his own political outfit.
"It's a different matter though that Prashant Bhushan paid no need to my repeated pleas in the Supreme Court that illegal tapping of my phones were a blatant breach of my privacy and would set a bad trend," he added.
Prashant Bhushan had filed a PIL in the Supreme Court, contesting Singh's plea for an injunction against the publication of the contents of what are called "the Amar Singh tapes". The celebrated PIL lawyer had argued that Singh's tapped conversations showed an attempt to maneuver institutions, including the judiciary and, therefore, constituted a matter of public interest.
"For five years, he carried on a sustained campaign for the release of the tapes, brushing aside the fact that they had been intercepted fraudulently. That now he is at the receiving end of the same kind of thuggery gives me no special pleasure, but I do hope that the Bhushans from now on will show more sensitivity to instances of intrusion into privacy and support him in demanding foolproof safeguards against unauthorized tapping. Again, I am saying this only because of the sense of hurt I felt when I was mocked for protesting against the violation of privacy. I was admonished even by the court for dropping Sonia Gandhi's name from my complaint. Justice G S Singhvi said I had wasted court's time. I decided to amend my petition after Attorney General and Solicitor General said that the tapping of my phone was a rogue operation," Singh added.
"Earlier, I had only a suspicion, but the findings of a forensic investigation that I am privy to has convinced me that the CD is part of the same stash," he said.
The statement of Singh, who going by the CD arranged the conversation between Shanti Bhushan and Mulayam Singh, is significant as it can be interpreted as attesting to the authenticity of the purported conversation.
He said that he knew Shanti Bhushan, and thanked the former law minister for advising him gratis on how to save his Rajya Sabha seat after his expulsion from the Samajwadi Party. "I am thankful to him," he said.
However, the MP, till recently Mulayam Singh's chief troubleshooter, refused to comment on the veracity of the CD. "I will not like to comment because I don't wish to confer legitimacy on an illegality. Shanti Bhushan's CD is not the same as Radia tapes as the conversations of the lobbyist were intercepted lawfully. Having been a victim of illegal tapping myself, I feel obligated not to do so," said Singh who fell out with Mulayam, and has since launched his own political outfit.
"It's a different matter though that Prashant Bhushan paid no need to my repeated pleas in the Supreme Court that illegal tapping of my phones were a blatant breach of my privacy and would set a bad trend," he added.
Prashant Bhushan had filed a PIL in the Supreme Court, contesting Singh's plea for an injunction against the publication of the contents of what are called "the Amar Singh tapes". The celebrated PIL lawyer had argued that Singh's tapped conversations showed an attempt to maneuver institutions, including the judiciary and, therefore, constituted a matter of public interest.
"For five years, he carried on a sustained campaign for the release of the tapes, brushing aside the fact that they had been intercepted fraudulently. That now he is at the receiving end of the same kind of thuggery gives me no special pleasure, but I do hope that the Bhushans from now on will show more sensitivity to instances of intrusion into privacy and support him in demanding foolproof safeguards against unauthorized tapping. Again, I am saying this only because of the sense of hurt I felt when I was mocked for protesting against the violation of privacy. I was admonished even by the court for dropping Sonia Gandhi's name from my complaint. Justice G S Singhvi said I had wasted court's time. I decided to amend my petition after Attorney General and Solicitor General said that the tapping of my phone was a rogue operation," Singh added.
curtsy-Times Of India
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