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Wednesday, Oct 24, 2007
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Statements of suspended IPS officers recorded

Special Correspondent

Panel asks whether they succumbed to political pressure during recruitment

25 senior IPS officers have been suspended so far
Panel will suggest steps for transparent recruitment process

LUCKNOW: The statements of about a dozen IPS officers, under suspension for alleged irregularities in police recruitment in Uttar Pradesh, were recorded by a three-member committee headed by Chief Secretary P.K. Mishra on Tuesday. On the first day of hearing on Monday, 10 IPS officers deposed before it.

Twenty-five senior IPS officers, who headed selection boards, were placed under suspension by the Mayawati government for alleged irregularities in the recruitment of police, radio wireless and Provincial Armed Constabulary personnel during the Mulayam Singh regime.

Though the committee members and the police officers were tight-lipped, sources said the panel wanted to know whether the officials succumbed to political pressure and whether separate lists of personnel to be selected were handed over to them.

Recruitment was made by 55 boards in 2005-2006 but following complaints of irregularities, the Bahujan Samaj Party government instituted an inquiry by a panel headed by Shailaja Kant Mishra, ADG, Inter-State Border Force and Special Task Force. It was on this committee’s recommendation that the government dismissed over 17,000 recruits and placed under suspension 25 IPS officers, including IGs, DIGs and SSPs.

On October 4, the Mishra committee was disbanded after it submitted the reports of 51 recruitment boards. The same day, the government named the panel headed by the Chief Secretary to find out the level of corruption in the recruitment process and whether pressure was exerted on the selection boards. It was also asked to suggest measures for making the recruitment process transparent and free from allurements.

DGP Vikram Singh and Lucknow Division Commissioner Vijay Shankar Pandey are the other members of the committee.

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