HC seeks I-T dept stand on Newslaundrys plea concerning leakage of seized material
New Delhi Sep 17 PTI The Delhi High Court Friday sought Income Tax Departments stand on a plea by online news portal Newslaundry and its co-founder Abhinandan Sekhri to restrain any leakage of the material seized during a survey operation held earlier this month A bench of Justices Manmohan and Navin Chawla granted time to the departments counsel to seek instructions on giving an undertaking against any leak and asked that the concerned officer join the proceedings on the next date of hearing ie September 21 Ask your client to join proceedings so that we can close it then and there Let him be by your sideIf he gives a statement we can put a quietus to the matter said the bench to the lawyer who asserted that the fear of leak was a bald apprehension Data of thousands of assessees is in safe custody of the department and it can be used only in accordance with law said counsel for the department Ajit Shamra During the course of the hearing the bench orally observed Normally no ones data should be leaked as it is ethically morally and legally wrong We have seen it on channels peoples data that has been seized is being displayed It should not happen it remarked Senior counsel Siddharth Dave appearing for the petitioners said that four notices under the Income Tax Act were issued to his client and a survey was held in the news portals premises on September 10 during which several devices including a mobile phone and a laptop belonging to the petitioner co-founder were seized by the IT authorities which contained several information which were of no relevance to any income tax proceedings The data may contain personal photos and information pertaining to investigative stories he said The senior lawyer argued that any data breach would be in violation of right to privacy and therefore a direction should be passed to the IT authorities to not leak any data and delete whatever is of no relevance to the proceedings It was also contended that any seizure during a survey operation was beyond the scope of survey and that no hash value of the seized data was given Please direct them not to leak seized data collected in this purported garb of a survey and allow me to delete non I-T related data the senior lawyer submitted In the petition filed through advocate Nipun Katyal the petitioners have said that the income tax officers and authorities do not have any power to interrupt the ordinary peaceful citizens of the country in any manner they like by utilizing the large powers given to them without keeping strictly within the four corners of those large powers The Petitioners are heading a news organization the Petitioners herein have sources contacts and other information on the digital machines It is the fiduciary duty of the Petitioners to protect them and keep it confidential It is further submitted that the legal communication regarding existing cases is present in the personal laptop and phone of the Petitioners If in any circumstances the leaks are committed it shall be a clear breach of the attorney client privilege as well as whistleblowers confidentiality the plea says PTI ADS SA
New Delhi Sep 17 PTI The Delhi High Court Friday sought Income Tax Departments stand on a plea by online news portal Newslaundry and its co-founder Abhinandan Sekhri to restrain any leakage of the material seized during a survey operation held earlier this month A bench of Justices Manmohan and Navin Chawla granted time to the departments counsel to seek instructions on giving an undertaking against any leak and asked that the concerned officer join the proceedings on the next date of hearing ie September 21 Ask your client to join proceedings so that we can close it then and there Let him be by your sideIf he gives a statement we can put a quietus to the matter said the bench to the lawyer who asserted that the fear of leak was a bald apprehension Data of thousands of assessees is in safe custody of the department and it can be used only in accordance with law said counsel for the department Ajit Shamra During the course of the hearing the bench orally observed Normally no ones data should be leaked as it is ethically morally and legally wrong We have seen it on channels peoples data that has been seized is being displayed It should not happen it remarked Senior counsel Siddharth Dave appearing for the petitioners said that four notices under the Income Tax Act were issued to his client and a survey was held in the news portals premises on September 10 during which several devices including a mobile phone and a laptop belonging to the petitioner co-founder were seized by the IT authorities which contained several information which were of no relevance to any income tax proceedings The data may contain personal photos and information pertaining to investigative stories he said The senior lawyer argued that any data breach would be in violation of right to privacy and therefore a direction should be passed to the IT authorities to not leak any data and delete whatever is of no relevance to the proceedings It was also contended that any seizure during a survey operation was beyond the scope of survey and that no hash value of the seized data was given Please direct them not to leak seized data collected in this purported garb of a survey and allow me to delete non I-T related data the senior lawyer submitted In the petition filed through advocate Nipun Katyal the petitioners have said that the income tax officers and authorities do not have any power to interrupt the ordinary peaceful citizens of the country in any manner they like by utilizing the large powers given to them without keeping strictly within the four corners of those large powers The Petitioners are heading a news organization the Petitioners herein have sources contacts and other information on the digital machines It is the fiduciary duty of the Petitioners to protect them and keep it confidential It is further submitted that the legal communication regarding existing cases is present in the personal laptop and phone of the Petitioners If in any circumstances the leaks are committed it shall be a clear breach of the attorney client privilege as well as whistleblowers confidentiality the plea says PTI ADS SA
