Denying the allegation of former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy that he had a vested interest in the decision to scrap the Karnataka Public Service Commission selection list, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday made it clear that the step was taken as a “last resort” and only after exhausting other options.
“We too did not want to scrap the selection list. Hence, we suggested to the KPSC to go in for re-evaluation and conduct interviews again. But the list had to be scrapped as the KPSC did not heed our suggestion,” Mr. Siddaramaiah told presspersons. It was the collective decision of the Cabinet, he said.
“Meritorious students need not be apprehensive as we have also given them age relaxation,” the Chief Minister said.
On the allegations that he had interfered in the working of an autonomous body such as the KPSC by calling its member 76 times on the selection of a candidate, the Chief Minister wondered if anybody would have time to make so many calls.
“In a democratic set-up, people come to us seeking help. But it does not mean that I tried to subvert norms and asked the KPSC to go out of the ways to help any candidate.”
The Chief Minister also denied that he had made the calls to help a relative of his close aide M. Kempaiah, who was recently appointed adviser to Home Minister. “I don’t even know the candidate,” he claimed.
