ISLAMABAD:
The Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) told the apex court on Wednesday that it had tapped more than 6,800 phones across the country in the month of May, reported sources.
In compliance of the court’s order, Deputy Attorney General Sajid Ilyas Bhatti (DAG) submitted a classified report, detailing the number of phones tapped in the past four months.
The bench revealed at least 6,523 phone numbers were tapped in the February, 6,819 in March, 6,742 in April and 6,856 in May after going through the classified report submitted.
“We cannot keep this matter under the carpet as these are the secret rights of the people, which should not be violated,” Nisar said. “If the agencies are legally authorised to tap the phones then the court has no objection. However, if the agency officials are doing it without any legal authority then it is not right.”
In 1996, then chief justice Sajjad Ali Shah took notice of the recording of phone calls by the intelligence agencies after a spying device was found connected to his phone.
Later, former president (late) Farooq Ahmed Leghari’s counsel – during the Benazir Bhutto dismissal case proceedings –cited before the Supreme Court phone tapping of judges by the Benazir regime as a major justification for her government’s ouster.
