J&K students urge Rahul Gandhi to raise paper leaks, recruitment scams in Parl.

The Jammu and Kashmir Students' Association (JKSA) has written to leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, urging him to raise what it described as persistent recruitment scams, paper leaks and institutional failures in Jammu and Kashmir during the ongoing Parliament session.

In its letter, the association alleged that repeated examination irregularities, procedural lapses, outsourcing controversies and delays in investigations have undermined public confidence in the Union Territory's recruitment process and affected the prospects of thousands of job aspirants.

JKSA national convenor Nasir Khuehami said recurring allegations of corruption, manipulation and paper leaks had weakened faith in public institutions and caused significant academic, financial and psychological hardship to young candidates seeking government employment.

The association identified the recruitment of around 1,200 sub-inspectors in the Jammu and Kashmir Police as the most prominent example of alleged institutional failure. It noted that after the recruitment examination conducted in 2022, allegations of irregularities led to a Central Bureau of Investigation probe, which subsequently resulted in chargesheets being filed and the recruitment process being cancelled.

According to the association, despite the passage of nearly four years, aspirants are still awaiting the conclusion of the investigation and greater clarity on institutional accountability and corrective measures.

JKSA also questioned the decision to award the contract for the fresh Sub-Inspector recruitment examination to Aptech Limited despite objections from candidates. It pointed out that a high-level committee constituted by the Ministry of Home Affairs to examine the tendering process had not made its report public, raising concerns over transparency.

The association further alleged that the controversy was not confined to a single recruitment exercise. It cited the finance accounts assistant, junior engineer (civil) and fire and emergency services recruitment processes, among others, claiming they were also marred by allegations of paper leaks, procedural irregularities, evaluation concerns and examination-related lapses.

The letter also criticised the continued outsourcing of recruitment examinations to private agencies, arguing that insufficient transparency in the tendering process had deepened mistrust among aspirants.

Urging Rahul Gandhi to take up the matter in Parliament, the association called for a detailed response from the Centre on recruitment controversies in Jammu and Kashmir, the status of ongoing investigations, measures taken to strengthen accountability and reforms aimed at ensuring transparent and merit-based recruitment.

The association also sought the creation of an independent oversight mechanism to safeguard future recruitment processes and restore confidence among candidates.

With IANS inputs