On 14 June Jantakareporter.com EXCLUSIVELY reported how a Delhi-based lawyer had acquired at least 50 hours of of audio recording of several high profile politicians (both dead and alive) and owners of top corporate houses in India.
We also reported on the dirty nexus of politicians and crony capitalists prevalent in India. The lawyer, Suren Uppal, had claimed that he had obtained at least 50 hours of audio recording from a former Essar employee, Albasit Khan, who was allegedly tasked to tap phones of officials in PMO, Reliance chairman Mukesh Ambani, his brother Anil Ambani, politicians Amar Singh, Pramod Mahajan, Praful Patel, Suresh Prabhu (current railway minister), Ram Naik 9current UP Governor) among others.
Writing about this expose, journalist Sheetal P Singh on his Facebook had said that this would arguably the biggest ever expose of the independent India.
Three days since we first broke the story, Indian Express too have provided a detailed coverage to the phone tapping that reportedly went on for at least 10 years between 2001 and 2011.
In one audio a top businessman is heard is heard talking about eliminating one ‘fat’ politician. This is believed to be in reference to Amar Singh.
In another clip, a politician (now deceased) is heard pleading before a top businessman asking for his help to bail him and his party out of the immediate political crisis.
Other clips include conversation of alleged conversations of Mukesh and Anil Ambani with directors/promoters of the two companies and other senior officials. Some clips have incriminating evidence of very specific acts of “espionage by interception” of phones of individuals in the highest echelons of the government.
Other clips also have purported conversations of senior officials of the PMO including Ranjan Bhattacharya and Brajesh Mishra and several officials across ministries, including Rajiv Mehrishi, who is the present Home
Secretary and Ajoy Mehta, Municipal Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai.
Uppal told Indian Express that what’s been reported so far are only the “tip of the iceberg” and that there were “far more incriminating conversations that expose invariably all aspects of corruption in the business milieu, Governance, policy making and judicial pronouncements that have marred our national pride and progress.”
Uppal said that he had contacted Prime Minister Narendra Modi about this expose as this was indicative of a serious breach of national security, but the PMO has till date not responded.
Meanwhile, Congress leader Manish Tiwari, said that the tapes must be made public.
He told ANI, “The allegations are serious and multifaceted implications, but most importantly if those tapes exist, they need to be made public because the people need to know as to what is going on.”