Itanagar: Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Thursday handed over the recommendations of state cabinet to Governor B D Mishra to invoke provisions of Article 317 of the Arunachal Pradesh State Service Commission (APPSC) to remove the members of the APPSC.
Chief Minister Pema Khandu who took to social media to share the information said that his government is “determined to take the process of cleansing of APPSC to its logical conclusion in the larger interests of our youths and state.”
The state cabinet had earlier met in the day to discuss matters related to the APPSC examination paper leak fiasco.
Sharing information of the meeting, Khandu said that the state government has from day one made its intentions very clear for overhauling the entire APPSC.
“We are firm to retain and restore the sanctity of APPSC. The cabinet has today recommended initiating the provisions of Article 317 for removal and suspension of four members of APPSC,” he said.
The chief minister also informed that the CBI has already reached Itanagar and has registered an FIR on the case.
“It (CBI) is now in the process of taking up the case soon for investigation,” Khandu said.
Article 317 (1) of the APPSC states that the “Chairman or any other member of a Public Service Commission can only be removed by an order of the President on the ground of misbehaviour after the Supreme Court, on reference being made to it by the President, has, on inquiry held in accordance with the procedure prescribed in that behalf under article 145, reported that the Chairman or such other member, as the case may be, ought on any such ground to be removed.”
“The President, in the case of the Union Commission or a Joint Commission, and the Governor in the case of a State Commission, may suspend from office the Chairman or any other member of the Commission in respect of whom a reference has been made to the Supreme Court.”
The major development comes three days after the All Arunachal Pradesh Students’ Union (AAPSU) and All Nyishi Students’ Union (ANSU) declared a 12-hour Capital bandh on November 02.
The student organisations have declared the bandh in protest against the “unconcerned attitude” of the state government over their demands.
The AAPSU and ANSU have been demanding the termination of all the accused involved in the APPSC examination paper leak and also suspension of all the in-office members of the commission.
The paper leak incident came to light after one Gyamar Padung, a candidate of the APPSC examination himself, filed a police complaint before the Itanagar police station on August 29 claiming that he suspected that the AE (civil) examination paper had been leaked.
A case was accordingly registered at the Itanagar police station and 10 persons including APPSC deputy secretary and deputy controller of examination Taket Jerang have been arrested in the case so far.
Besides recommending a CBI probe into the case, the state government had recently suspended APPSC secretary Jayanta Kumar Ray and joint secretary Suraj Gurung while commission chairman Nipo Nabam resigned from his post on October 14 amid mounting pressure from several quarters.
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