Itanagar: The Arunachal Pradesh government has set up a One-Man Inquiry Commission, led by retired Justice P K Deka, to investigate allegations of question paper leaks in recruitment examinations conducted by the Arunachal Pradesh Public Service Commission (APPSC) spanning from April 1, 2014, to August 31, 2022.
The formation of the Commission comes in the wake of concerns surrounding the transparency and fairness of the recruitment process due to suspected question paper leaks in various exams conducted over an eight-year period.
The Commission’s scope of work, as outlined in Chief Secretary Dharmendra’s order, would be to operate under a well-defined set of Terms of Reference, aims to unearth the truth behind alleged instances of question paper leaks and associated irregularities during the specified period of APPSC examinations.
It will also scrutinize potential lapses on the part of officials, officers, and other stakeholders directly or indirectly involved in the recruitment process. Additionally, the Commission is tasked with suggesting corrective measures to ensure future recruitment procedures uphold transparency, impartiality, and efficiency. Furthermore, any other pertinent issues that emerge during the course of the investigation will be examined, and recommendations will be formulated accordingly.
The Commission has also been empowered to summon individuals for sworn testimonies, requisition relevant documents, accept evidence in affidavit form, obtain public records, and scrutinize both witnesses and documents pertinent to the case.
The APPSC has been asked to provide all secretarial, logistics and other assistance to the Commission which is expected to compile a comprehensive report detailing its findings and recommendations within a span of three months.
The question paper leak incident came to light after one Gyamar Padung, a candidate of the APPSC assistant engineer (civil) examination himself, filed a police complaint before the Itanagar police station on August 29 claiming that he suspected that the examination paper had been leaked.
The case was initially investigated by the Capital police and later transferred to the Special Investigation Cell (SIC) of the state police and then the CBI.
