Can't Provide Details of Bhushan CD Under RTI: Police to HC

Outlook: New Delhi: Friday, January 16, 2015.

The city police today told Delhi High Court that it cannot provide under RTI the forensic report on a CD purportedly containing a conversation among lawyer Shanti Bhushan and politicians Amar Singh and Mulayam Singh Yadav.

The Delhi Police contended before Justice V P Vaish that it cannot provide investigation material under the Right to Information Act (RTI) and challenged a direction of the Central Information Commission (CIC) to make public the report regarding the compact disc (CD).

Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Sanjay Jain, appearing for the city police, told the high court that an "untraced report", stating that the agency has failed to get any clue about the culprits involved in the case relating to the CD, has been filed in a trial court and the matter was still pending.

The high court posted the matter for May 21 as the next date of hearing before the trial court was May 6.

During the hearing, the ASG said forensic reports of the CD were "subject matter" of investigation and cannot be provided to an RTI activist under the transparency lawyer as ordered by CIC.

In 2011, the high court had stayed the CIC order on an appeal by Delhi Police against its November 14, 2011 decision. The CIC's order had come on a plea by RTI activist Subhash Chandra Agarwal.

The CD purportedly contained a conversation where Bhushan allegedly promised Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav that a judge could be influenced for a price.

Delhi Police in its plea had contended that it cannot comply with the CIC order as the matter was subjudice before a trial court.

CIC had directed Delhi Police and the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL), Chandigarh to make public the forensic reports on the allegedly doctored CD.

Agarwal has claimed the Chandigarh laboratory has already revealed its report on the CD, reportedly certifying it as doctored.

The trial court, which has been hearing the case relating to the CD, had rejected a closure report filed by police in July 2011.

The magistrate rejected the closure report and had directed officials to expeditiously probe the motive behind creation of the controversial CD.

In May last year, Delhi Police had filed an "untraced report" before the trial court saying it had failed to get any "clue of the culprits" involved in the matter.