Telangana Public Service Commission defends decision to conduct Group-I Mains before high court, denies any procedural violations
Representing the commission, its counsel argued that the examination was conducted transparently and in strict adherence to established procedures. He urged the court to consider the far-reaching consequences of annulling the examination in the absence of concrete evidence.
'The process was transparent. A significant number of qualified candidates belong to OBC, SC, ST, women, and physically challenged categories.
Cancelling the examination on vague and unsubstantiated grounds would deal a severe blow to hundreds of aspirants who have invested years of preparation,' he submitted.
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The commission also informed the court of its intent to file an additional affidavit containing comprehensive details of the training modules, evaluation guidelines, and supporting materials to aid the court in adjudicating the matter.
The counsel further stated that the petitioners had failed to make specific or substantiated allegations.
'Except for a solitary writ petition containing a vague assertion, no petitioner has produced credible evidence of malfeasance. There are no claims of mala fides, no breach of statutory rules, and no indication that either the examination centres or the evaluation process was compromised,' he argued.
He emphasised that the evaluation was conducted anonymously and randomly, using expert evaluators trained specifically for this exam.
He denied allegations of selective evaluation or manipulation in the allotment of answer scripts.
Addressing concerns raised about Telugu medium candidates, the commission clarified that evaluators proficient in both English and Telugu were appointed, and hence, the assessment was fair and unbiased.
Regarding impersonation concerns, the commission submitted that biometric verification of candidates was conducted and cross-checked with nominal rolls approved by the chief superintendents at the respective centres.
The high court is scheduled to continue hearing the matter on Friday.
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