Gandhinagar: In the wake of the strong protest by the aspirants of the non-secretariat clerk and secretariat assistant class 3 recruitment exam of the Gujarat Subordinate Service Selection Board (GSSSB) held on November 17, who were demanding cancellation of the allegedly malpractice marred exam, the state government today announced to constitute a special investigation team (SIT) for detailed probe of the matter.

Minister of State for home Pradipsinh Jadeja said that the SIT constituted under the chairmanship of Principal Secretary of the General Administration Department, Kamal Dayani IAS would have two senior police officers ADGP (CID) Manoj Shashidharan and I G -Gandhinagar Mayanksinh Chavda and Additional Secretary (GAD) Jwalant Trivedi IAS as its three members. The SIT constituted on the instructions of CM Vijay Rupani would hand over its report to the government in 10 days till when the results of the exam won’t be published and put on hold.

He said that the SIT has been constituted after the discussion with the student leaders of the agitating aspirants namely Yuvrajsinh Jadeja, Yuvrajsinh Gohil, Hardki Prajapati and Bhavsinh Rathod. The SIT would hold a meeting with the student leaders tomorrow.

Jadeja said that the terms of the reference for the SIT has been as per the demands of the students and would include the investigation as to whether the paper of the exam was leaked or not. It would now take all the documents of the ongoing probes by the GSSSB.

Jadeja said that some people were trying to politicize the matter but he thanked them that they did not let it happen. ‘They are all our own children and we are sorry that they had to spend the night out there at the venue,’ he said.

To a query he said that the government would take appropriate decision after receiving the SIT report.

Earlier Jadeja had yesterday said that strict action would be taken against those found involved in malpractices during the exam but the whole examination would not be cancelled.

He had said that there were 39 complaints of malpractices during the exam which were being investigated in detail. 305 related CCTV footage were also being checked to verify the complaints. ‘The board though was an autonomous body yet the state government has sought a report from it and the chairman (Asit Vora) has informed that the investigation of the complaints was in last stages and it would be completed in next two days or so.The board would take action against those involved in malpractices so that the future of those candidates who had spent two to five years for the preparation for the exam was not affected,’ he had said.

He had said that the exam was conducted at 3173 centers of which almost 98% were covered under the CCTV.

Jadeja said that one aspirant who had sent the paper out with the help of whatsapp in Palanpur and the one who had sent the answer key to him have been arrested. The reports about leak of the paper in Bhavnagar were found to be completely fake during investigation. The Congress lodged complaint of Surendranagar was under investigation and action would be taken against the culprits.

To a query he said that the Gujarat government has in last five years given jobs to over one lakh youths while the Congress which was inciting the youths due to political reasons had stopped the recruitment process during its regimes.

Later talking to newsmen Yuvrajsinh Jadeja and other student leaders who had held talks with government officials, told newsmen that they had taken all the students in to confidence. He said that even for cancellation of the exam, a procedure was needed. The SIT could be a part of it. The evidences would now be put in front of the SIT.

DeshGujarat