Indian media stars caught up in graft scandal

India's feisty media claim to be guardians of national democracy, but a scandal involving high-profile journalists and telephone taps has given the country its own WikiLeaks-style controversy.
At the centre of the storm is India's best-known television journalist, Barkha Dutt, who is accused of acting as a power broker in negotiations involving big business and the government over allocation of cabinet seats.
Tapes recorded by the police have emerged as part of a major row over the cut-rate sale of mobile phone licences in 2007-2008 which is estimated to have cost the treasury as much as 40 billion dollars in lost revenues.
Transcripts of the 104 tapes, many of which have been printed by two news magazines, have brought question marks over the reputations of Dutt, veteran newspaper columnist Vir Sanghvi and other big media names.
The tapes are a treasure trove for close followers of New Delhi's interwoven media, business and political scenes.
A number of them, which record the conversations of about 30 journalists, date back to 2009 when the re-elected Congress party was patching together its current coalition government.
Dutt and Sanghvi are heard in separate conversations discussing who should be in the cabinet with influential lobbyist Niira Radia, who was pushing for A. Raja, a south Indian regional politician, to be reinstated as a minister.