The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) will soon begin the investigation into the alleged irregularities in the Chhattisgarh State Public Service Commission (CGPSC) exam 2021.
“Irregularities in the CGPSC examination 2021 will be investigated by the CBI, the Union Government has issued a notification for the same today,” informed Chhattisgarh’s Chief Minister (CM) Vishnu Deo Sai on late Thursday evening, April 25.
Taking to X, the CM further remarked that “the honourable Prime Minister (PM) during the State assembly elections had given a guarantee to order an enquiry into the matter and act against the culprits. This guarantee has been fulfilled as soon as the case has been handed over to CBI. Whoever the criminals are who dares to play with the future of the youths will not be spared.”
छत्तीसगढ़ पीएससी परीक्षा 2021 में हुई अनियमितता की जांच सीबीआई करेगी। केन्द्र सरकार द्वारा इस मामले में आज विधिवत अधिसूचना आज जारी कर दी गई है।
माननीय प्रधानमंत्री @narendramodi जी ने विधानसभा चुनाव के दौरान इस मामले की जांच कराने और दोषी लोगों के विरूद्ध कार्यवाही की गारंटी दी…
— Vishnu Deo Sai (@vishnudsai) April 25, 2024
Meanwhile, praising the development, the state finance minister, OP Chaudhary in a video message said that during the Congress government led by Bhupesh Baghel PSC markets were organised at the time of recruitment for our young brothers and sisters.
We fought against this along with our sisters and brothers on the streets. Our government had decided for a CBI enquiry into the matter and I am relieved that the Union Government has notified it yesterday, I am hopeful that justice will be done to our young brother and sisters of Chhattisgarh, added FM, Chaudhary.
“फिर पूरी हुई मोदी की गारंटी”
छत्तीसगढ़ पीएससी परीक्षा 2021 में हुई गड़बड़ी को लेकर सीबीआई जाँच का आदेश….कांग्रेस की सरकार ने छत्तीसगढ़ में सीबीआई पर रोक लगाकर 5 सालों तक भ्रष्टाचार किए लेकिन अब केंद्र सरकार द्वारा छत्तीसगढ़ में CBI जांच की विधिवत अधिसूचना जारी करके छत्तीसगढ़… pic.twitter.com/Ip1NKKp0PN
— OP Choudhary (@OPChoudhary_Ind) April 26, 2024
It is to be noted that earlier, the Vishnu Deo Sai led Chhattisgarh government, in its first cabinet meeting after the distribution of the portfolios to the ministers, decided to initiate a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry into the alleged irregularities of CGPSC 2021 examination.
The decision taken by the cabinet was a much-awaited development, as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the run-up to the State assembly election had promised to begin a probe and send the culprits of the alleged scams behind bars if voted to power.
Several senior leaders of the BJP, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi had trained guns at the previous Congress government during the State assembly election campaign last year, alleging that wide-scale irregularities had occurred in the PSC examination.
Allegation of Irregularities
It is to be noted that the State’s Public Service Commission landed in deep waters after it declared the list of successful candidates for CGPSC 2021 in April last year. The list includes relatives of a few congress leaders, senior bureaucrats, and seasoned businessmen. The list also includes one ‘Nitesh’ whose surname was also kept hidden; later, it was claimed that the said candidate is the adopted son of the then Commission’s Chairman, Tamam Sonwani.
Adding fuel to the fire, a post by an anonymous PSC aspirant on social media further stormed the state’s political galleries after the aspirants made serious allegations about the selection process of the candidates and claimed that a couple of drug addicts also got selected in the examination.
In the viral post, the user who had introduced himself as a CGPSC aspirant claimed that a few acquaintances of one of his casual friends were well aware of the questions of the main papers, way before the exam was conducted by the commission.
After the claims made by the aspirant went viral on social media, which garnered support from other aspirants claiming similar irregularities, the state’s main opposition BJP launched a state-wide protest against the then Bhupesh Baghel’s-led Congress government. The party’s youth wing, along with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), had hit the streets and demonstrated aggressive protests against the alleged nepotism and fraud in the examination held in 2021.
Further, senior leaders of the party, including then State President Arun Sao, and former IAS OP Chaudhary, while raising objections to the process, had also demanded that a retired judge investigate the whole selection process.
The state-wide demonstration against the alleged scam further inspired another BJP leader and former minister, Nanhki Ram Kanwar, who filed a petition in the high court demanding action against the selection of as many as 18 candidates.
Hearing on the petition, the division bench of Bilaspur High Court, while halting the appointments of as many as 18 candidates whose selection has been questioned by the petitioner, sought an explanation from the PSC. The court, during the hearing, further observed that the selection of all these candidates was too much of a coincidence.
