The Union government on 5 May decided to drop its decision to name a judge to investigate the snooping of a young woman by police in Gujarat, allegedly at the behest of state Chief Minister Narendra Modi.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and National Conference, the two key alliance partners of the United Progressive Alliance government, have openly expressed their opposition to the probe against Modi and his government, at the fag end the Union government.
The Union government is understood to have said that it has decided to entrust the task of appointing a judge, to probe the "snoopgate" episode in Gujarat, to the next government at the Centre, to be formed after the ongoing elections to the Lok Sabha.
Last week, Union Ministers Kapil Sibal and Sushil Kumar Shinde had told the media persons that a judge would be appointed to probe the snooping of a woman in Gujarat by the state police, allegedly at the instance of Modi. Even BJP attacked the Congress over the government's decision to probe by a judge into the snooping. BJP said that the UPA was practicing vendetta as it has realised its defeat is imminent in the ongoing general elections.
BJP questioned the timing of the government's move as the it has said that the cabinet had decided to appoint a judge into the snooping case in last December, and it could not finalise on the judge all these months.
It is said that NCP leader Praful Patel and National Conference leader and Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah have opposed the government's decision to probe the snooping case now. The time is not appropriate for the probe, the two leaders have reportedly opined.
It is alleged that the Gujarat police, on the orders of the then-home minister Amit Shah, a close aide of Modi, carried out an illegal surveillance on a woman architect in Gujarat. And it is also reported that Shah did it on the behest of Modi.
(Ed: VP)
