4620 phone tapped by State Govt in four years

BHUBANESWAR: The State Home Department has tapped landline phones and mobile phones of 4620 persons within four years from December 19, 2008 to September 15, 2012, revealed RTI information regarding phone tapping by the State Governemnt.

The RTI information exposed that the home department didn’t tap any phone from 2000 to 2006, whereas 111 telephones were tapped in 2007 and 313 telephones in 2008.

According to the RTI activist Biswapriya Kanungo, the person who has asked the information, said, “In which condition the Home Department has tapped a large number of telephones, the State Government should clarify about that as it violates the Right to Privacy under Article 21 of the Constitution.”

“What type of public emergency created or public safety question came to the fore for which reason the State Home Department tapped the telephones of the people,” Kanungo questioned. He alleged that the State Government is using the Home Department in the duty of phone tapping to record the conversation of advocates, journalists, opposition political leaders and social activists.

“Phone tapping without the knowledge of an innocent person is illegal, undemocratic, unconstitutional and violation of human rights,” said Kanungo.