Except BJP all J&K Parties Ask JKSSB for Ban on APTECH
Job aspirants in Jammu and Kashmir are up in arms against Aptech, a company responsible for conducting government recruitment exams for various posts in government departments. The protests began after several aspirants were cane-charged at Dogra Chowk in Jammu, prompting hundreds of jobseekers to assemble at Ambedkar Park and demand the immediate removal of Aptech from conducting government recruitments.
According to the protesters, Aptech was blacklisted in 2019 and is accused of leaking crucial national-level exams in the last two months. Except for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), all other political parties in Jammu and Kashmir have demanded a ban on Aptech from conducting JKSSB exams.
The decision of the JKSSB to continue with a blacklisted company has raised concerns among political leaders, including the president of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mehbooba Mufti. She stated that the JKSSB’s decision indicates how deeply entrenched corruption is in Jammu and Kashmir.
A senior JKSSB official said that Aptech was hired as per the central and J&K governments’ guidelines and completed the blacklisting period of three years in May last year. However, several states had blacklisted the company, and the Delhi High Court had imposed a penalty of ₹10 lakh on the company for alleged malpractices in recruitment.
The protesting aspirants have put forward four core demands – the immediate withdrawal of the exam calendar released by JKSSB, removal of Aptech from conducting government recruitments, technical investigation into exams conducted by Aptech, and stern action against those involved in paper leak scams.
The protests have continued in Srinagar, where several aspirants staged a protest on the second day. National Conference vice-president Omar Abdullah condemned the lathi-charge on protesting aspirants and demanded that the contract with Aptech be immediately canceled. Abdullah also stated that the contract puts the future of scores of aspirants who rely on JKSSB to conduct recruitment exams at risk.
The protests by job aspirants in Jammu and Kashmir are a reminder of the challenges faced by young people in securing employment in the region. The demand for transparent and fair recruitment processes is crucial to ensure that qualified candidates have an equal opportunity to secure jobs. The government must take these demands seriously and address the concerns of the job aspirants in Jammu and Kashmir.
