Section 5(2) of the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885 permits the interception in the occurrence of any public emergency or in the interest of public safety. It would not be possible to indicate the number of FIRs launched exclusively on the basis of tapping as field investigations are also necessary to collect substantive evidence.

Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs has been authorized for interception of telephones at the Central Government level. Home Secretaries of the State Governments are authorized for interception of telephones at the State level.

The competent authority also reviews orders to ensure that the authorized period is not exceeded. There is also an Oversight Committee headed by the Cabinet Secretary to monitor the activity related to lawful interception.

Instructions are there to the agencies to ensure that the intercepted material is kept in safe custody.

This was stated by the Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs, Shri Gurudas Kamat in written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha today.