Guwahati: A single missing word —“each”— in govt instructions to the Assam Public Service Commission (APSC) led to the cancellation of recruitment results declared on Monday evening, after a reservation error left the Moran community without seats while the Motak community received all four.Instead of granting reservation to two each from the Moran and Motak communities, the commission gave four to Motak and none for Moran. The revised results were announced on Tuesday by including the names of two Moran candidates in place of two OBC candidates.
The govt later clarified that the directive should have read “two each”. Following the clarification, APSC withdrew the results minutes after declaration, triggering criticism among candidates and in academic circles, before issuing a fresh corrected list of qualified candidates later on Tuesday.When contacted, APSC controller of examinations Chinmoy Nath said the earlier govt communication lacked clarity on separate reservations. “We were not informed about separate reservations for Moran and Motak. We were informed about two reservations for Moran-Motak, but we were not informed that one each for Moran and Motak should be reserved for Assam Civil Service and Assam Police Service,” said Nath.As organisations, including the All Assam Students’ Union, protested in Guwahati against the cancellation, CM Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Tuesday the govt was not at fault. “Image of the govt was not tarnished; instead, the govt received the best wishes of the Moran community,” Sarma said, calling it a minor issue in APSC.
