The government today said that a judge will be appointed to conduct probe into Gujarat 'snoopgate' before counting of votes in Lok Sabha polls and rubbished BJP leader Arun Jaitley's claim that no judge will "lend" himself to the "political and malafide" exercise targeting Narendra Modi.
"The Cabinet had taken the decision to appoint a Commission of Inquiry to probe the incident of snooping on a woman in Gujarat. We will soon appoint the judge....Before May 16," Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde told a press conference in Shimla.
Asked whether the appointment of a judge in the midst of Lok Sabha elections would not amount to violation of the Model Code of Conduct, Shinde said, "It will not" as the decision had been taken more than four months ago by the Union Cabinet.
"I am worried. The way the Chief Minister of Gujarat had snooped into the life of a woman, I am really worried what will happen to the women of the country if he becomes the Prime Minister," he said.
In New Delhi, Law Minister Kapil Sibal rubbished Jaitley's claim that no judge will "lend" himself to the "political and malafide" exercise targeting the BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate.
"You will get a snoopgate judge before May 16. I don't know why these people are so worried? Why leaders of BJP are worried and why they are making public statement that no judge should join this commission?," he said.
Sibal said that Modi against whom accusations have been made in the controversy will be investigated.
The Congress leader said BJP is worried as its leaders know the fact that "once the commission is set up there is no saving for Narendra Modi."
Reacting the government's move, BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said it was nothing but a reflection of arrogance of the UPA government, which, he claimed, would be voted out of power.
