JAMMU: Alleging large scale malpractices, bungling, nepotism and corruption in the process of selections conducted by various recruitment agencies, including SSB for government jobs, scores of Panthers Party activists led by Harsh Dev Singh Chairman JKNPP and Yashpal Kundal State President Young Panthers held a massive protest seeking abolition of interviews in the selection process to Govt. services for non-gazetted posts at Exhibition Ground on Thursday.
While addressing the media Harsh Dev Singh pointed towards the recent judgment of State Vigilance Commission wherein it indicted the members of an interview committee for fraudulent selections at the cost of merit and recommended abolition of interviews for Class III and Class IV posts. Hailing the verdict of SVC, he regretted that while the interviews for Class III and Class IV posts were abolished in rest of the country from 1st January this year, J and K Government remained non-chalant on the issue. He sought an immediate change in recruitment policy for State Government jobs by abolition of the interview system and making selections on the basis of academic merit itself. He said that there were several instances where process of interview was abused and merit subverted by awarding disproportionate marks to the tail-enders. He said that it was established that helmsman who appoint their favourites as members of the recruitment agencies and then use the said members for getting favours for their blue eyed candidates in the viva voce thus vitiating the sanctity of the entire selection process. Besides he said, the intervention of top bureaucrats and ministers in the selection process has become a routine feature of all selections, creating great embitterment and unrest amongst the educated unemployed youth. He said that though the BJP led govt. at the centre had announced abolition of interview for all non-gazetted posts but ironically the BJP partnered government in J and K issued a notification mandating oral test (interview) for all such services which was to be held after written test.
Harsh, while seeking the abolition of interview process particularly for non- gazetted posts, said that it would ensure transparency in the selection process besides restoring faith of unemployed youth in the system. He said there is no justification for holding interview for the Class IV and ministerial staff posts and the provision of interview in such posts has only increased the scope for manipulation, maneuverability and corruption. He said that barring such posts where an interview based on skill test would help in judging special capabilities of the candidates for a particular post, abolition of the provision of interview will not only be in larger public interest but would also offer a level playing field for even those of the candidates who are resource less and belong to lower socio-economic strata.
Yashpal Kundal said that nepotism, large scale corruption and other malpractices have become a general phenomenon during the selection of the candidates in the interviews for the various category of posts.
Prominent among those who participated and spoke on the occasion included Rajesh Padgotra, Paramjit Singh Marshall, Gagan Pratap, Sham Gorkha, Nirmal Kishore, Sanjeev Verma, Khajoor Singh, Udhayveer, Shankar Singh, Sanju, Rajinder Singh, Rakesh Verma, Naresh besides others.