Cabinet approves commission to probe Snoopgate

The Union Cabinet on Thursday cleared a commission of inquiry that will investigate allegations of snooping on a woman and the misuse of state machinery by the Gujarat Government, which is headed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.

The commission, which has been approved under Section 3 of the Commission of Inquiry Act of 1952, will investigate charges of snooping against the Modi Government, which is alleged to have happened in 2009.

News portals Cobrapost and Gulail had aired an alleged taped conversation between former Gujarat Home Minister Amit Shah, and police officer G.L. Singhal.

In the alleged taped conversation, Shah was instructing Singhal to closely monitor the movements of the woman referred to in the report as "Madhuri", not her real name.

Shah, who is currently heading the BJP election campaign in Uttar Pradesh, is alleged to have misused his powers and the state police machinery for the illegal surveillance of a young woman in August 2009 at the behest of his "saheb."

The Gujarat Government has set up a two-member panel of former judge Sugunaben Bhatt and retired bureaucrat K. C. Kapoor to probe the charges.