Gujarat government spent Rs 50 lakh on 'snoopgate' probe commission

GANDHINAGAR: The Gujarat government today said it had spent Rs 50.7 lakh on the Justice Sugnya Bhatt commission which was formed to probe the alleged snooping on a Bangalore-based woman architect and later scrapped upon a High Court order.

The government's reply came today to a question asked by Congress MLA Tajashreeben Patel who had asked on the last day of the Assembly session in March.

The reply was tabled in the Assembly on March 31 but it was not distributed to the MLAs at that time, and it was made available today.

The state spent Rs 50.7 lakh on the panel during this period, the reply said.

The commission was formed in November 2013 and dissolved in October last year.

The government formed the two-member commission to probe the scandal where it was alleged that the state police mounted surveillance on a young woman on the instruction of BJP president Amit Shah (then minister of state for home in Gujarat), at the behest of one "Saheb".

The other member of the panel was former IAS officer K C Kapoor.

In October the High Court, in response to a petition filed by the woman's father, set aside the notification under which the commission had been formed.