Cash-for-job scam at APSC: Judicial panel wants further probe by different agency

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The Justice (retd.) Biplab Kumar Sharma Commission is reported to have found more anomalies and misconduct in the holding of the Combined Competitive Exams (CCE)-2014 by the Assam Public Services Commission (APSC) and recommended that another inquiry into the matter be done through another investigation agency.

The alleged existence of more anomalies was pointed out by the Commission in a report submitted recently to the state government, according to sources.

It should be mentioned here that the report submitted by the BK Sharma Commission has not been made public. However, sources claimed that the report contains references to anomalies and misconduct in the selection process of candidates in CCE-2014. The sources also said that the Commission has recommended to the state government that the probe be further handed over to a different investigation agency so that more culprits suspected of being involved in the job-for-cash scam can be rooted out.

The sources also claimed that the involvement of more culprits was suspected during the judicial commission’s inquiry, but ferreting out more culprits allegedly involved in the scam was not possible for the judicial commission as it was outside its jurisdiction.

As the allegations of money changing hands during the CCE selection process were not within the ambit of the one-man commission’s investigation, it has been recommended in the recent report that the probe be handed over to a different agency so that the allegations can be verified, the sources added.

The sources further said that the Justice BK Sharma Commission also pointed out the existence of anomalies in the CCE-2014 selection process conducted by the APSC.

According to the sources, the Commission was able to establish that there were security lapses in the strong room of the APSC, where the answer sheets for CCE-2014 were kept. It was said to be a serious security lapse as the keys to the strong room, to be handled only by the APSC chairman and the Principal Chief Controller, according to the rules, found their way into the hands of an unauthorised person at the APSC. The alleged person was said to have been involved in substituting some of the answer sheets inside the strong room.

The one-man commission is also said to have given recommendations to the state government on the appointment process of the APSC chairman and members, the source revealed.

The Commission reportedly gave several recommendations, among which was the appointment of the APSC chairman through a process similar to that of the appointment of the judges. The recommendation also included the view that there should not be a ‘pick and choose’ system in the appointments of the chairman and members as it would lead to bias being involved, as the source quoted the report as saying.

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