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Tehelka tapes sent to experts
By Onkar Singh in New Delhi
May 28, 2003 01:42 IST

Justice S N Phukan, who is heading the Tehelka Commission of Inquiry, on Tuesday got all the tapes submitted by tehelka.com in the presence of lawyers and sent them for forensic examination.

Tarun Tejpal, editor-in-chief of tehelka.com, and his two reporters Anirudha Bahal and Samuel Mathew who were involved in the defence expose, were not present in the court. Even their advocate Prashan Bhushan was not present.

The commission decided to accept the government's plea that the tapes should be sent to a foreign expert for a full report. Justice Phukan fixed July 2 for the next hearing of the case.

"By then we will get the report from the experts," he said.

Jaya Jaitly, former chairman of the Samata Party, had challenged the veracity of the tapes and alleged that tehelka.com had tempered with them in order to make their story more sensational.

In one of the tapes Jaitly is shown talking to two businessmen of Westend -- a fake company -- and promising to help them fix a defence deal.

Onkar Singh in New Delhi
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