Get chips used in sting op: Court to NDTV

The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed television channel NDTV to produce the original computerised chips and other material used in the BMW sting operation involving senior advocates R K Anand and I U Khan.

A three-judge bench of Justices B N Aggrawal, G S Singhvi and Aftab Alam passed the direction after senior counsel Altaf Ahmed appearing for Anand submitted that the alleged tapes showing the sting operation were doctored and edited to implicate him and Khan.

The sting operation was linked to the the BMW hit-and-run case in which Anand had appeared as the defence counsel and Khan had appeared as public prosecutor. The expose hinted towards collusion between the two to influence witness Sunil Kulkarni.

Anand argued in the apex court that the High Court did not grant any opportunity to the defence to cross-examine the reporter of the channel who conducted the sting operation.

The apex court while directing the TV channel to furnish the relevant tapes and chips also appointed Additional Solicitor General Gopal Subramaniam and senior counsel Nageswara Rao as amicus curiaes to assist the court in the matter.

The bench said the amicus curiaes would assist the court in examining the validity and admissibility of electronic material as a piece of evidence in court of law.

However, the apex court clarified that the notice being issued to the channel was not in the form of any 'adversarial litigation', but rather for the assistance of the court in arriving at the truth. It posted the matter for further hearing to November 18.

The bench rejected the argument of the defence that the High Court had conducted the contempt proceedings in a 'summary' manner without giving adequate opportunity to the defence to put forth their views and cross examine the TV crew.

"The court can evolve its own procedure subject to fair play," the bench observed.

During an earlier hearing, the bench had observed that the High Court had taken a lenient view of the two advocate's action by debarring them only for four months from practising in courts.

Both Anand and Khan were accused of obstructing the administration of justice by influencing witness Sunil Kulkarni in the sensational case as claimed in the expose conducted by the channel.

The court on May 31 last year had taken suo motu cognisance of the NDTV sting operation showing Anand, in collusion with Khan, allegedly offering money to Kulkarni to depose in favour of Sanjeev Nanda, the prime accused in the hit-and-run case.

Nanda, the grandson of retired Naval chief S M Nanda, has already been sentenced to five years imprisonment in the case by a city court.