Arunachal Pradesh Public Service Commission chairperson quits over assistant engineer exam paper leak

GUWAHATI: Arunachal Pradesh Public Service Commission (APPSC) chairperson Nipo Nabam resigned from his post late on Friday amid the controversy over the paper leak of the assistant engineer recruitment exam. His resignation comes days after the secretary and joint secretary of the APPSC were suspended for their alleged involvement in the scam.
Nabam tendered his resignation to governor Brig (retd.) BD Mishra.
"In the matter of the unpleasant APPSC fiasco, I, being the head of the commission feel it prudent and rational to put in my papers on moral grounds," Nabam wrote in his resignation letter.
In a statement issued to the media, Nabam, however, said as per the manual for the APPSC conduct of examination guidelines, 2017 and SOP for ensuring secrecy and prevention of question paper leak until the same is handed over to the examinees, is the domain of the controller/deputy/assistant controller of examinations and as such, chairman or members of the commission have no "direct handling role".
Nabam said acting on the advice of the Nyishi Elite Society (NES), the apex body of the community, he decided to own moral responsibility for the omissions and commissions of the 'officer' of the commission and implored the governor to accept his resignation.
The resignation comes days after a meeting between CM Khandu and the All Arunachal Pradesh Students' Union (AAPSU) and the All Nyishi Students' Union (ANSU) on reforms in the commission.
On Saturday, Khandu told reporters that there are technical difficulties in the complete overhaul of the commission, but his government is trying to bring reforms despite the limitations.
"The public service commission is an autonomous body. The state government does not have direct control over it. The government deputes the secretary and joint secretary of the APPSC and we have suspended them already. But there are other staffers in the commission whom we cannot suspend because they are not our employees," Khandu said.
Therefore, Khandu said his cabinet has decided to merge the cadre system of APPSC with the secretariat, after which the government will have control over the rest of the APPSC staff.
Khandu also said his government would bring a special law in the upcoming assembly session to stop paper leak and to maintain the sanctity of examinations. However, AAPSU has demanded the ouster of 'politically appointed' members of the APPSC and its administrative staff. "We want a total overhaul of the APPSC. The members of the commission, who are in the commission by virtue of political appointments, must be removed. We also demand the ouster of the officials who are involved in such corrupt practices for years," AAPSU adviser Pritam Sonam said.
Last month, the state government wrote to the Centre, seeking a CBI probe into the case.
Union law and justice minister Kiren Rijiju, who represents the state in the Lok Sabha, has taken up the matter with the CBI for an early probe, he said.
The CM said his government would soon come out with a robust SOP for the APPSC and the Arunachal Pradesh Staff Selection Board (APSSB) to prevent malpractices in the future.
The investigation into the case was started after a candidate lodged a police complaint on August 29, alleging that the assistant engineer (civil) examination paper was leaked.
More than 400 candidates appeared in the examination, which was held on August 26 and 27. So far, the police have arrested 10 people in connection with the case, including government officials.