NEW DELHI, 11 March 2008 — Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee yesterday claimed in Parliament that her phones were being tapped by the United Progressive Alliance government, a charge promptly dismissed by Minister for Communications A. Raja.
Banerjee raised the issue during question hour in the Lok Sabha claiming that she was “unable to utter a single line” over the phone, which was being tapped by the police and other government agencies.
“Will the government inquire into the matter. My landline phones and mobile phones are being tapped,” she said, adding that phones of several other members of Parliament and journalists were also being tapped.
Speaker Somnath Chatterjee asked Banerjee to file a complaint with his office. “I will compel the government to inquire into the matter,” he said. The speaker asked Raja whether the government was tapping Banerjee’s phones, to which he replied, “Not at all.” Banerjee said she had been using the phone given to her by Parliament and was ready to lay the phone on the table of the house if she was unable to use it without being tapped.
