Belagavi, Dec 4: Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Monday announced in the Legislative Assembly that the re-examination for the recruitment of police sub-inspectors will be postponed to January 23.
The Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) had earlier said it would conduct the re-examination on December 23.
Aspirants have been demanding the postponement, claiming there was not enough time for preparations.
"The measures or precautions that should be taken while conducting the exams, if done properly this situation would not have arisen. But, it has happened, whether it happened during their (opposition BJP) time or others, let's not get into that discussion now," Parameshwara said.
He asked: "When there is an (overall) vacancy of 1,500 sub-inspectors, how can the police stations function, how can the law and order be maintained?"
"There is no intention to trouble the candidates, if our schedule completes quickly, 1,500 sub-inspectors will get jobs. So the schedule that was there for December 23, will be postponed to January 23," he added.
The KEA had recently said in a statement that following the High Court order, the PSI re-examination is being conducted and those who were eligible to appear for the exam in the previous examination will be entitled to write the re-examination.
On January 21, 2021, the police department issued a notification for the recruitment of 545 PSI posts and the written examination was held on October 3, 2021.
The exam was mired in controversy after the question paper was leaked on social media.
Several people were arrested including the then Additional Director General of Police Amrit Paul, and some senior police officers of the rank of deputy superintendent of police, inspector, sub-inspector, assistant sub-inspector, and constables in connection with the scandal.
The government cancelled the exam and decided to conduct it afresh.
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Kolkata(PTI): Leader of Opposition in West Bengal assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, on Saturday wrote to Governor C V Ananda Bose, seeking an independent judicial inquiry into “administrative incompetence” and “public humiliation of citizens”at the Salt Lake Stadium here during an event featuring football legend Lionel Messi.
In his letter, Adhikari alleged that the stadium, built with public funds, was converted into a “private durbar” for political elites, resulting in humiliation and harassment of spectators who had purchased tickets.
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"I write this communication with a profound sense of anguish, constitutional alarm, and moral urgency. What unfolded at the Yuva Bharati Krirangan was not merely an episode of administrative incompetence, it was a public humiliation of citizens, a grotesque exhibition of unrestrained political privilege, and a direct assault on the rule of law in the presence of thousands of witnesses," Adhikari asserted.
He claimed that football fans were denied basic amenities and dignified viewing due to unchecked VIP presence, obstruction of sightlines, and arbitrary restrictions.
Chaos unfolded at the Salt Lake Stadium on Saturday, after spectators resorted to vandalism on failing to catch a glimpse of Messi, alleging gross mismanagement by the organisers and obstruction of views by VIPs.
Police arrested the event’s prime organiser, Satadru Datta, while Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced the constitution of a high-level inquiry committee to probe the incident.
Adhikari, in his letter, held the sports department, police authorities and the minister-in-charge of sports and youth affairs responsible, alleging that the situation was “enabled, if not orchestrated”, by the state administration.
He claimed that the conduct of the authorities reflected indifference to public accountability and misuse of power.
The senior BJP leader also took exception to the inquiry committee announced by the chief minister, contending that it lacked independence and credibility.
Adhikari said the panel is headed by Justice (Retd) Asim Ray, who currently holds a statutory post under the administrative control of the state government, and includes senior bureaucrats whose actions are under scrutiny.
"This committee is structurally compromised, legally infirm, and morally indefensible," he said in the letter to the governor.
Adhikari urged Bose to exercise his constitutional authority to order the formation of a truly independent inquiry committee.
He proposed that the committee be headed by a sitting judge of the Calcutta High Court, and assisted by persons of unimpeachable integrity with no institutional, administrative or political affiliation with the state government.
“The issue transcends football, politics, and personalities. It concerns the right of citizens to be treated with dignity, the obligation of the state to act as trustee of public interest, and the duty of constitutional authorities to intervene when the executive becomes a law unto itself,” Adhikari said.
Later, speaking to reporters, he accused the state government of mismanaging the situation at Salt Lake Stadium, and demanded the resignation of the CM.
Adhikari said all those responsible for the fiasco should be arrested, and spectators must be provided refunds.
He alleged that senior Trinamool Congress leaders and their associates crowded around Messi, leaving thousands of fans at the stadium deprived of catching a clear glimpse of the football star.
“This was a case of misuse of power at the cost of ordinary citizens. The chief minister must take moral responsibility, those responsible for the incident should be arrested, and every fan who was cheated must get a refund,” Adhikari asserted.
He added that public anger would not subside without accountability and corrective action.
