KO photos by Abid Bhat
Hundreds Of JKSSB Job Aspirants Hit Streets, Seek LG’s Intervention
By Majid Nabi
Srinagar- Job aspirants in Jammu and Kashmir staged angry protests on Wednesday against government decision to hire a ‘blacklisted’ company by the Jammu and Kashmir Services Selection Board (JKSSB) for conducting written examinations.
Police resorted to cane charge and detained a large number of job aspirants in Jammu after they tried to stage a massive protest.
The protesters had assembled outside Dogra Chowk in the heart of the city and tried to take out a march but police swung into action and restored to cane-charge and detained several youths, the officials said. Police said protestors tried to take out a march in violation of prohibitory orders.
The protesters raised slogans against the JKSSB for hiring APTECH Limited, the company which had been blacklisted in 2019 for conduct of computer-based tests.
Similar demonstrations were staged in Doda, Bhaderwah, Rajouri and other parts of Jammu besides a massive protest which was held at Srinagar’s Press Enclave.
Carrying placards which reads “save our future, “error 404”, “no govt jobs found”, “blanket ban on APTECH”, hundreds of the JKSSB job aspirants appeared in Srinagar on Wednesday afternoon and staged a peaceful protest against the administration decision of hiring a ‘tainted’ company to conduct recruitment exams.
Chanting slogans like “APTECH go back” and “we want justice”, the protesters said they are concerned about their future as they were crossing the age limit due to the alleged failure of the administration to complete the recruitment process in time.
“They are conducting an examination and then cancelling it…how many times we have to appear for the same exam time and again,” a protester said.
In July last year, the Jammu and Kashmir administration headed by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha cancelled the selected list of 1,200 police sub-inspectors, 1300 junior engineers and 1,000 finance account assistants (FAA) following allegations of paper leak and malpractices.
The CBI, which is investigating the sub-inspector recruitment scam after registering a case on August 3 on a reference from the J&K administration, had already filed a chargesheet against 24 persons including the mastermind, Yatin Yadav of Rewari, and a BSF commandant, on November 12, 2022.
“APTECH was blacklisted in the past and there is no guarantee it will not do any wrongdoing in future. What forced the LG administration to engage such a black-listed company?” asked a woman protester.
Protesting job aspirants sought a blanket ban on APTECH, claiming that the firm was panelized by the top court of India and is on the blacklist of various other states.
They appealed to the Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to revoke the order of engaging APTECH for conducting exams so the future of thousands of educated youth aspiring to appear in JKSSB exams is saved.
They alleged that the administration, without waiting for the final order of the J&K High Court, assigned Aptech to conduct JKSSB exams in the UT.
“What sense does it make to hire a blacklisted company to conduct recruitment exams? At first, why was Aptech even hired for this purpose?” Arif Hussain Malik, a job aspirant from Anantnag said.
Hussain said that the government cannot put the future of thousands of educated youth at risk by assigning APTECH like fraudulent companies to conduct JKSSB exams.
“This decision of the government has left us shell-shocked as the company which has been blacklisted in Ambala, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan, has been awarded a contract of holding JKSSB exams. This company is involved in a number of scams, while 25 of its employees including a supervisor were arrested in bribery cases,” he added.
Tehseen Iqbal, another aspirant said that awarding a contract to a tainted company like Aptech amounts to contempt of court as the top court of the Union Territory has reserved its decision.
“This is contempt of court as the J&K High Court is yet to pronounce its final judgment. How can the administration violate law and allow a tainted company to conduct JKSSB exams? We have decided not to appear in any exam till the government revokes its order and puts a blanket ban on Aptech,” he added.
A senior official of the JKSSB told a local news agency KNO there was no justification for the protest as the matter with regard to the hiring of Aptech Company is “sub-judice”.
However, he said, the company was hired as per the central and J&K government guidelines as it has already completed the blacklisting period of three years in May last year.
“When we are selecting a company for conducting a written examination, we also employ checks and balances to ensure transparency, accountability and fairness in the selection. We are following a procedure which is matching the standards of major national level recruitment agencies,” the official said.
In July last year, the Jammu and Kashmir administration headed by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha cancelled the selected list of 1,200 police sub-inspectors, 1300 junior engineers and 1,000 finance account assistants (FAA) following allegations of paper leak and malpractices.
The CBI, which is investigating the sub-inspector recruitment scam after registering a case on August 3 on a reference from the J-K administration, had already filed a chargesheet against 24 persons including the mastermind, Yatin Yadav of Rewari, and a BSF commandant, on November 12, 2022.
Meanwhile former chief minister Omar Abdullah along with leaders of other political parties condemned the use of force against the job aspirants.
“I condemn, in the strongest possible terms, the use of force and lathicharge against students and JKSSB aspirants. These youngsters were exercising their democratic right to protest against the recent decision to engage a blacklisted firm,” Abdullah, the National Conference vice president, said.
Apni Party president and former minister, Syed Mohammad Altaf Bukhari also appealed to the Lieutenant Governor to revoke its decision of assigning Aptech to conduct JKSSB exams.
He said the government before awarding the contract, should bear in mind that Aptech stands blacklisted in various other states of India for being involved in corrupt practices.
“We demand immediate rollback of the order and stand in support of our children who took to the roads against the decision of this ‘unconscious’ regime, which is in deep slumbers. I appeal to the LG to revoke the order for the larger interest of the youth,” Bukhari said.
Democratic Azad Party (DAP) leader and former chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad tweeted, “It is disheartening to hear about the use of violence against #JKSSB aspirants in J and K who were peacefully protesting for their future. I strongly condemn such actions and urge the government to intervene to protect the rights of students without fear of harm!”
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