rediff.com: Transcript of the Tarun Tejpal Chat


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'The canker of corruption has crept into the armed forces'

New Delhi, 13 March, 2001: Mr Tarun Tejpal, editor-in-chief of Tehelka.com, took some time out of his hectic schedule to answer questions on The Rediff Chat vis-a-vis the underhand defence deals that Tehelka.com has exposed.

Mr. Tarun Tejpal : Hi. I am here to ansswer your questions.

manoj : Mr.Where from you got the money.Is it yours or from binamies.Tell the real story.
Mr. Tarun Tejpal : The seed money of our company comes from venture capitalist funding.

editor303 : Tarun, do high ranking politicians take bribes of a lakh rupees ?
Mr. Tarun Tejpal : Clearly, they do since we have some of them on camera taking them as bribes.

nirvana : aren't you scared as theses wheeler dealers are well connected & may be ur life is in danger
Mr. Tarun Tejpal : No, now that the story is in the public domain I think there is nothing to worry about.But for about eight weeks when we were editing and preparing the story, we were quite tense.

sups : Hello, Mr. Tejpal, do u think this kind of corruption in defence deals is a typical 3rd world phenomena or is it common in developed countries as well?
Mr. Tarun Tejpal : It is probably more dominant in third world countries where policing is sometimes weak and people in power fall easily prey to inducements. But the main difference really is in most third world countries the press lacks the teeth to keep the politicians in place.

VINAY : DO YOU THINK THAT ALL POLITICIANS ARE CORRUPT
Mr. Tarun Tejpal : No, I do not think so at all. I still think we have a lot of outstanding men in public affairs. Unfortunately, a large number of people who hold public office and have access to power and money find it very easy to abuse it now.

Paari : Hi What do u expect from the govt on this operation?
Mr. Tarun Tejpal : Well, I expected to address the evidence we have produced and hold someone accountable.

bhanu_nagpur_sey : Is a majority part of the army top brass corrupt??
Mr. Tarun Tejpal : Not at all. In fact, the Indian army by and large continues to be perhaps the most splendid and honest institution in India. The sad bit is the canker of corruption has begun to inflitrate this previously incorruptible institution now.

curious : When something of this nature comes out in public, there is a lot of furore, but it quietly dies down and most people involved go scot free. do you think this will happen again??
Mr. Tarun Tejpal : I really do not know. It will depend on the strength of character of our press and our public. If the press and public demand accountability, no government can escape it.

Princess : Tarun, Rs 11 lakh in the days of dotcom burnout is a fortune.. how are you guys funded, since there is little advertising happening on your site, and even less ecommerce?
Mr. Tarun Tejpal : Rupees eleven lakh was spent over a period of seven months and was a part of our news gathering budget. This is not an imodest budget for a news organisation. As I said earlier, we are funded by venture capitalists like all other dotcoms.

jay : TEHELKA WHY YOU DON'T FILE CASE AGAINST CULPRITS
Mr. Tarun Tejpal : We are journalists and in a sense our job really ends with the successful breaking of the story. Filing of cases, policing of improprieties is now the job of different agencies.

VINAY : SIR DONT YOU THINK THAT THAT TYPE OF POLITICIANS SHOULD BE PUNISHED BY THE PUBLIC BECAUSE THEY ALWAYS AVOID PUBLIC INTERESTS AND MAKING MONEY FOR THEIR SELF.
Mr. Tarun Tejpal : I think the answer lies in the public and the press being vigilant. People in power will always abuse their power if allowed to do so.

gkadel : What did you gain from this seeing that it was always believed that india is full of corrupt people and the people already knew about the corruption.. proof is jsut mental satisfaction
Mr. Tarun Tejpal : For me, the most astonishing fallout of this investigation has been the incredible outpouring of goodwill from people. All night and all day people have been calling in from all parts of the country to say that somehow the story has restored their faith in the future of India. That in itself, a renewed faith in our own futures is enough reward for the story.

Mr. Tarun Tejpal : Bye for now. I really enjoyed chatting with all of you.

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