New Delhi, August 1 (IANS): The Supreme Court Thursday asked whether the Income Tax department had informed the authorities which had directed the tapping of former corporate lobbyist Niira Radia's telephone about the sensitive and serious nature of the conversations.

An apex court bench headed by Justice G.S. Singhvi also asked whether the Income Tax department had informed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) about the criminality of certain matters that surfaced from the conversations.

Noting that it was five years since the former corporate lobbyist's phones were tapped but no follow-up action had taken place, the court also sought the original records sanctioning the tapping of the conversations running into more than 5,000 hours.

Additional Solicitor General A.S. Chandiok told the court that Radia tapes could not be disclosed to anybody or everybody and that they were only to be disclosed to the Income Tax officers.