In a significant development, the Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay proceedings of the committee appointed by the Narendra Modi government in Gujarat into the infamous snoopgate scandal.

The apex court, while passing the order, also directed the petitioner (a woman and her father) to approach the Gujarat High Court for state related probe.

The apex court passed the order in response to a submission by the Centre that there is no proposal to appoint any commission of inquiry into the ‘snoopgate’ controversy.

The father of the woman involved in the matter has asked the apex court to restrain the incumbent government from setting up a commission to investigate the snooping scandal.

Earlier, Manmohan Singh-led government had announced that it would appoint a judge before May 16, the day votes polled in the Lok Sabha election are counted, to head the judicial commission set up to investigate the issue.

A war of words had erupted between BJP leader Arun Jaitley and Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde after the announcement.

The issue of ‘snoopgate’ enquiry allegedly involving BJP’s PM candidate ran into trouble with two UPA constituents — NCP and National Conference — opposing the move to appoint a judge in “dying hours” of the government.

The central government had decided in December to set up a judicial Commission of Inquiry to investigate the charges of illegal surveillance by the Gujarat government.

It was alleged that illegal surveillance was carried out on a young woman in Gujarat in 2009 at the behest of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and his then Minister of State for Home Amit Shah.

Both Modi and Shah have denied the allegations.

Although eyes are now set on the counting day of the ongoing polls, the Election Commissioner HS Bramha on Friday said that exit polls can now be aired after May 12, the last day of polling.

Addressing a press conference here, HS Brahma said, “Exit polls are banned only till May 12, the last day of polling.”

Earlier, Brahma had said that ban is till May 16.

“It (Exit polls) can be telecast on Monday after 6:30 pm,” he added.

“Exit poll is prohibited till half an hour after closing of the poll on May 12 (the last day of the nine-phased polling),” the Election Commission said in a statement, PTI reported.

“In a multi-phased election, the ban begins on the hour the poll is fixed and ends half an hour after the poll ends in the last phase,” said Dhirendra Ojha, Director in the EC.

Ojha further said, “In a multi-phased election, the ban begins on the hour the poll is fixed and ends half an hour after the poll ends in the last phase.”

In the backdrop of almost all parties violation the model code of conduct during the election rallies in past few months, Brahma added, “Major challenge faced in 2014 polls was implementation of model code.”

The Election Commissioner further sought a report from the Uttar Pradesh poll authorities on controversial remarks made by Mulayam Singh Yadav, Ajit Singh and Azam Khan.

HS Brahma also dismissed the Gujarat police report of no threat to Modi rally.

The Uttar Pradesh police have shut down a hotel serving rotis with ‘NaMo’ mark on them here.

According to a report, the machine used to imprint the mark suggesting BJP party’s slogan ‘Ab ki Bar Modi Sarkaar’ on rotis has also been sealed. The owner of the hotel has reportedly been told not to communicate with media.

The report comes a day after thousands of BJP activists protested here and in New Delhi against the poll panel’s initial curbs on rallies by the party’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi even as he got a warm welcome on his visit here with crowds thronging the routes he travelled.

The poll fever in this holy town is really high and the step taken by authorities can trigger a controversy. On microblogging website Twitter, some have denounced the step, saying it is shameful on the part of the Samajwadi Party, which is at the helm of affairs in Uttar Pradesh.

BJP supporters are placing mass orders of many products with ‘NaMo’ mark on it while makers of these items are happily reciprocating to cash in on these ‘electoral gains’.

Taking a cue from Western countries, including the US Presidential Election, election merchandising has emerged as a major trend in the ongoing elections.

While Aam Aadmi Party has also tried to make use of various merchandise such as caps, T-shirts and their election symbol ‘broom’, it is the supporters of BJP and Modi who have taken a big lead on this front.

As a result, a number of products in markets here are being sold with the ‘NaMo’ — now famous initials for Narendra Modi — mark, ranging from bricks to balloons to laddoos to jackets and other merchandise.

Makers and sellers of many of these products said that they began doing so after huge orders were placed with them by BJP supporters, while some neutral customers are also joining in to be part of the trend.

When contacted, BJP leaders said this has nothing to do with the official party campaigning programme, but some enthusiastic supporters might have come out with such innovative ideas.

Besides Modi, AAP’s Arvind Kejriwal and Congress’s Ajay Rai are also in the fray in this Lok Sabha seat which has over 16 lakh voters spread across five Assembly constituencies.