“The government views the disclosure of such information seriously and in this context, an inquiry has been ordered,” an affidavit filed by the government said. It denied Tata’s allegation that it had adopted a lackadaisical attitude on a petition filed by Tata.
“I deny that the government has adopted a lackadaisical attitude or that it was standing by and allowing leaked material of this kind to be freely distributed and published,” the two-page affidavit filed by Additional Director of Income Tax (Investigations) said.
The affidavit said that by an office memorandum issued on December 27, 2010, the Ministry of Finance appointed two senior officers to inquire into the leakage of “classified documents/telephonic intercepts.”
“The terms of reference of the inquiry committee are detailed and comprehensive and reflect the concern of the Ministry of Finance to properly investigate the matter and to take a comprehensive view of the subject,” it said.
Published 01 February 2011, 18:08 IST