Former Kerala governor urges removal of PSC leadership

Former Kerala governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar recommended that President Droupadi Murmu remove Kerala Public Service Commission chairman M.R. Baiju and commission members, according to reports citing Lok Bhavan sources. The recommendation followed complaints alleging irregularities in PSC recruitment. It does not itself remove anyone from office. Arlekar sent the recommendation shortly before leaving the Kerala governorship. Reports differ on its precise scope: some say it covered Baiju alone, while others say it included commission members, with one account specifying 15. The exact wording of the letter has not been made public in the reports. The recommendation was reportedly based on complaints, including those from Yuva Morcha and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, and findings from the commission’s internal vigilance wing. The allegations concern recruitment examinations and appointments. They have not been established as findings of wrongdoing against the chairman or members. The move comes amid a Crime Branch investigation into alleged irregularities in recruitment to the State Planning Board. Kerala’s High Court has questioned the pace of that investigation,...