Vidhan Sabha recruitment 'scam' rocks Pushkar Singh Dhami led Uttarakhand government

Dehradun: As an investigation is still underway into recruitments made by the Uttarakhand Subordinate Services Selection Commission, allegations of yet another recruitment scam in the Vidhan Sabha have rocked the hill state's political firmament.

Principal opposition Congress has alleged largescale irregularities in the recruitments held by the state assembly during Cabinet Minister Premchand Aggrawal's tenure as Speaker.

The allegation is that relatives and acquaintances of political leaders were given jobs in the state assembly during the period. A list of 74 recruitments made during Aggrawal's tenure as Speaker has been doing the rounds on the internet.

In apparent retaliation, another list of 178 recruitments made during the previous tenure of senior Congress leader Govind Singh Kunjwal as Speaker has also gone viral.

Amid the ongoing allegations, Aggrawal has said no irregularities had been committed in the recruitments made during his stint as Speaker.

"Recruitments as per requirements were made during my time, which is a routine thing. All norms were strictly followed and no irregularities were committed. Proper tests were held before the recruitments," Aggrawal, who is a cabinet minister now, told reporters soon after the charges were levelled by the Congress against him.

The Congress staged a dharna outside the Vidhan Sabha gates on Saturday, demanding action against those involved in the alleged scam.

Kunjwal has also made a similar assertion, saying the recruitments made during his time have been upheld by both Uttarakhand High Court and the Supreme Court.

"Those who are raising fingers at the recruitments made during my time are guilty of contempt of court," he said.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has said he will ask the present Speaker, Ritu Khanduri, to conduct a probe into the allegations of irregularities in all recruitments, no matter during whose tenure they were committed.

"The Vidhan Sabha is our constitutional body. I would request the Speaker of the Assembly to investigate the allegations of any irregularities in the recruitment, no matter during whose tenure they were committed," Dhami told reporters here on Sunday.

"We are in favour of investigations in any institution where there has been irregularity in recruitment and the state government will fully cooperate in it,” he said.

Asked about the development in probe against the UKSSSC, the chief minister said he has handed over its investigation to a Special Task Force (STF), which has so far arrested 25 accused and put them behind bars.

Those found guilty, however powerful they may be, will not be spared, Dhami said.

"It is a question related to the future of our sons and daughters. We are making a foolproof plan so that no one can even think of repeating this type of crime in future," he said.