Madras High Court overturns 2011 phone tapping order
The Madras High Court has canceled a 2011 government order that let officials tap the phone of P Kishore, Everonn Education's Managing Director, during a CBI bribery investigation.
The court said this move broke Kishore's right to privacy, since the law only allows such surveillance in cases of public emergency or safety—not for regular criminal probes.
Phone tapping only okay in public emergency: Court
Justice N Anand Venkatesh made it clear: phone tapping under the Indian Telegraph Act is only okay when there's a real threat to public safety or an emergency. Using it for everyday crime detection isn't allowed.
The court also pointed out that proper procedures weren't followed—intercepted calls should've been reviewed by a special committee but weren't.
HC declares bribery case evidence still stands
Citing major Supreme Court decisions that protect privacy as a basic right, the High Court declared both the tapping order and all intercepted calls unconstitutional.
However, any evidence collected separately in the bribery case still stands and can be used in court.