YS Jagan challenges CM for CBI probe into mega DSC

Jagan said APPSC had initially considered digital evaluation during the COVID-19 period to avoid delays, but candidates approached the High Court because the notification had not specified such a system

Metro India News | AMARAVATI 

Former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and YSRCP president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has launched a sharp political attack on Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, accusing him of targeting the previous government’s APPSC Group-I recruitment process to divert attention from alleged irregularities in the recent Mega DSC. Addressing a media conference at the YSRCP central office in Tadepalli, Jagan challenged Chandrababu to agree to a CBI investigation into the DSC recruitment process, saying the YSRCP was ready for a CBI probe into the Group-I selections.

Jagan alleged that the government was using the Group-I controversy to politically shield Education Minister Nara Lokesh from allegations surrounding the DSC.Defending the Group-I recruitment conducted during the YSRCP regime, Jagan said the notification itself had been issued by the previous TDP government before the 2019 elections, with the preliminary examination conducted on May 26, before the YSRCP came to power.

He said the preliminary results were subsequently announced by the YSRCP government and the mains examination was conducted in December 2020. He also rejected allegations that digital evaluation was used to manipulate the Group-I examination. Jagan said APPSC had initially considered digital evaluation during the COVID-19 period to avoid delays, but candidates approached the High Court because the notification had not specified such a system. Following the court’s directions, he claimed, digital evaluation was abandoned and answer scripts were evaluated manually.

Jagan further dismissed allegations that Group-I answer scripts were evaluated at Hi-Land, claiming that the SIT appointed by the present government itself had informed the High Court through an affidavit that no such evaluation took place there. He also raised questions over a person identified as Naveen, who reportedly worked in the question-paper preparation section and initially secured the top rank in DSC. Jagan demanded a comprehensive investigation into how the candidate obtained the rank and whether any examination material had reached others. He maintained that the futures of candidates who had already secured government jobs should not be jeopardized for political reasons and reiterated his demand for an independent CBI investigation into the DSC allegations.