The Union Public Service Commission has commented on rumours about a possible scam in the recruitment of eligible candidates through the Civil Services 2019 exam. The Commission has rejected all claims of a scam in event of selection of 829 candidates through the Civil Services 2019 exam against 927 vacancies advertised earlier. UPSC has denied any scam and said that shortlisting a lesser number of candidates is a common norm that has been followed for decades. The Commission also added that it has kept a reserve list of candidates which cannot be disclosed as per Rule 16(5) of the Civil Services Examination Rules, 2019. Incidentally, the Commission released the results of the Civil Services 2019 recruitment indicating the shortlisting of 829 candidates. However, the fact that 927 vacancies were originally advertised has caused widespread rumours of backdoor entry or lateral recruitment.
The Commission has denied the possibilities of any scam in the selection of deserving candidates. It also added that all rules of examination enforced by the government of India have been followed strictly to make the process fair and unbiased. Therefore it has officially rejected the claims of possible backdoor or lateral recruitment by holding back deserving candidates. The number of vacancies advertised in the official Civil Services 2019 exam was 927. However, with the release of the results, the Commission announced only the selection of 829 candidates in the first list. The discrepancy led to widespread rumours of a possible scam as a hashtag saying #UPSC_scam trended for several hours on popular social media network Twitter.
The UPSC in their official statements released on Thursday said that it is a common practice to hold a reserve list of selected candidates and announce the selection of a lesser number of candidates. Under the rules governing the conduct of the exam, the Commission is not allowed to disclose the reserve list. The reserve list is reportedly held to cater for any shortfall of selected candidates while making an appointment to the available vacancies. Incidentally, the UPSC selected 759 candidates against 812 vacancies in 2018, 990 candidates against 1058 vacancies in 2017, and 1099 candidates against 1209 vacancies in 2016. As per rule 16(5) of the Civil Services Examination Rules 2019, the Commission cannot disclose the reserve list until the process of exercise of preference in appointment is over.
UPSC conducted the final selection rounds of the Civil Services 2019 exam earlier during the period of February to August 2020. The Preliminary and Main exam was conducted before and qualifying candidates were called for the personal interview stages. Subsequently, the Commission also released the results indicating the selection of the 829 personnel against 927 vacancies announced before.
