india

Updated: Mar 03, 2018 23:43 IST

The headquarters of one of the country’s largest recruiting agencies, the Staff Selection Commission (SSC), is under siege for almost a week.

On Saturday, a metro station was shut down and security tightened as an agitation gained momentum demanding cancellation of a recruitment exam and a CBI probe into alleged paper leak.

Hundreds of government job aspirants, who sat for the Combined Graduate Level Examination (tier-2) between February 17 and 22, are protesting outside the CGO complex, that houses the SSC headquarters.

The protest led to closure of the Jawahalal Nehru Stadium metro station and some of the gates of the CGO complex, that also has the headquarters of top paramilitary forces of the country.

Every year, the SSC recruits around 50 to 55000 candidates for jobs of lower division clerk, data entry operator, postal assistants, multi-tasking staff, income tax inspectors, sub-inspectors for Delhi police, CBI and paramilitary forces. For the graduate level exam, 1.89 lakh candidates sat for tier-2 and were selected from 15.43 lakh candidates who appeared in the tier-1 exam.

Protesters are knocking the doors of ministers and politicians seeking their intervention. Jitendra Singh, minister of personnel under which the SSC functions, has also met them but the commission says their protest is fuelled by at least three coaching centres that have a commercial interest in the cancellation of the exam. “Prima facie there was no leakage. The crime branch of Delhi police is already probing the matter and if required the CBI may also be asked by the government to look into it said Ashim Khurana, the SSC chairman.

“We have knowledge that certain coaching institutes are manipulating and escalating the protest. Once the exam is cancelled, they may offer crash course to candidates ace it earning quick bucks in the process,” he added.

But candidates deny the charge. “We are sleeping outside the CGO complex. Initially we paid from our pocket for meals, quilts and water. Later, our teachers helped. No coaching centre is helping us,” said Poorvesh, a protester. “We have evidence the exam paper was leaked. We provided the evidence to the minister of personnel. We will not move till the exam is cancelled and a CBI probe is ordered.”

In a related development, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and his estranged anti-graft crusade colleague Yogendra Yadav separately demanded a CBI probe.“Thousands of SSC exam aspirants have been demanding a CBI enquiry. This issue is related to the fate of thousands of exam aspirants. Centre should accept their demand and immediately order a CBI probe in the matter,” the CM tweeted.