Kerala PSC Irregularities: Two Officials Arrested as SIT Expands Recruitment Probe

The Kerala Crime Branch has expanded its investigation into alleged irregularities in Public Service Commission (PSC) recruitment examinations, with two senior officials arrested in connection with an evaluation lapse in the State Planning Board recruitment test.

PSC Additional Secretary R Hari was arrested in Kochi on Friday, October 30, after remaining untraceable for several days, police sources said. He was suspended by the Commission following the allegations. Former PSC Deputy Secretary P Satheesh, the first person arrested in the case, is currently in judicial custody.

Both officials held supervisory responsibilities during the State Planning Board recruitment examination, which is at the centre of the investigation.

The case came to light after 10 descriptive Economics questions carrying 58 marks were not assigned to the appropriate evaluators due to errors in the On Screen Marking (OSM) system. As a result, the answer sheets containing those responses were left unevaluated.

Following a complaint by Shyam Krishna, who had initially secured third rank, a revaluation was conducted. Krishna moved to the first position after the reassessment, while the original topper, Arun J Pradeep, slipped to fifth place.

The state government had constituted a Crime Branch Special Investigation Team (SIT) to examine the alleged irregularities. The investigation has since been extended to three other PSC recruitment examinations — Village Oil Inspector, Assistant Motor Vehicle Inspector and Fisheries Extension Officer.

The Crime Branch has also questioned PSC chairman M R Baiju and other Commission members as part of the probe. PSC Secretary Saju George was scheduled to appear before the SIT on October 31, while Examination Controller Bini K Abraham was summoned for November 2, officials said.

Investigators are examining the circumstances surrounding the evaluation lapse and suspected irregularities in the other recruitment examinations. The probe will also look into the roles of officials involved in conducting and supervising the tests.

Further investigation in the cases is underway.