Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 18 (IANS) The standoff between the Kerala Crime Branch and the Kerala Public Service Commission (PSC) over alleged irregularities in the State Planning Board examinations appears headed for a fresh confrontation after the investigating agency secured a legal opinion backing its authority to question PSC members.

According to sources, the legal opinion states that the constitutional status enjoyed by the PSC does not exempt its chairman or members from appearing before investigating officers at a venue specified by the probe agency. The Crime Branch is expected to formally communicate the opinion to the Commission in the coming days.

The latest development could compel the PSC to reconsider its earlier stand that its members need not appear at the Crime Branch headquarters for questioning. The Commission had argued that its members occupy constitutional positions and had instead offered to facilitate recording of their statements at the PSC office.

The PSC had also cited an earlier Kerala High Court order that granted relief to PSC officials when they were asked to appear before a Legislative Assembly committee. However, the Crime Branch has maintained that constitutional status does not provide immunity from a criminal investigation and that PSC members are duty-bound to cooperate with the probe.

The latest legal opinion is widely seen as strengthening the Crime Branch’s position in the ongoing tussle. The PSC is now expected to examine its legal options, with the possibility of seeking judicial intervention if it decides to challenge the investigating agency’s stand.

The dispute stems from an investigation into alleged irregularities in examinations conducted by the PSC for senior posts in the State Planning Board. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Crime Branch has reportedly detected serious lapses in the conduct and evaluation of the examinations and recommended a review of appointments made on the basis of the test. Investigators are also examining whether the irregularities were procedural in nature or part of a deliberate attempt to favour certain candidates.

The SIT has already issued notices to the PSC chairman and its members for questioning. One member, S.A. Saif, failed to appear before the Crime Branch on September 15 despite being directed to do so.

What began as a probe into alleged examination irregularities has now evolved into a broader contest over the extent of the PSC’s constitutional protections and the powers of criminal investigators. With the Crime Branch armed with a favourable legal opinion, the focus now shifts to how the PSC responds.

–IANS

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