“Startled” by the CBI revelation that Mumbai Railway Recruitment Board Chairman S.M. Sharma “masterminded the wilful sale of question papers,” the Railways have decided not only to take stern action against him but also curtail the powers of all 21 RRB chiefs.
Railway Board Chairman Vivek Sahai, briefing journalists here on Tuesday, also hinted at the cancellation of the examinations conducted by the Mumbai RRB on June 6 and 13 for the posts of Assistant Loco Pilot and Assistant Station Master after receiving the final report of the Central Bureau of Investigation.
Mr. Sahai said all 21 recruitment boards across the country had set their own questions, and hence the leak or sale of question papers of one board would not affect the efficacy of the examinations conducted by the others. However, he added, the CBI's preliminary report, that the sale of question papers for two examinations had been masterminded by Mr. Sharma, started the Railways.
Final decision awaited
The Railway Board is awaiting a complete report from the CBI before taking the final decision on the action to be initiated against Mr. Sharma. Mr. Sahai did not rule out his dismissal.
Mr. Sahai denied that there was delay in suspending Mr. Sharma, saying the Railways wanted to study the CBI's preliminary report.
The Railways gave the green signal for his arrest after the CBI complained of evasion.
At the first hint of sale of question papers, the Railways' vigilance team swung into action, the trail leading to Mr. Sharma. The same team brought the irregularity to the CBI's notice.
However, Mr. Sahai said, the CBI took up the probe on its own and that the Railways had not made a request for it. While welcoming the CBI probe, he underscored the Railways' limitations in bringing to justice culprits outside its organisation.
Less from question leak
The lesson learnt from this episode, according to Mr. Sahai, was that too much power had been vested in one person. Efforts were under way to ensure checks and balances so as to deny anyone official access to all information and processes, thereby curtailing powers.
The Railways were also studying the systems adopted by the Union Public Service Commission and the CBSE, and the Defence Ministry's selection process. Being the largest employer, recruiting around 50,000 hands in a single year, the Railways could not be compared with smaller organisations, he said.
Mr. Sahai said there was no flaw in the present set-up of recruitment, and ruled out a centralised system.
On the appointment of chairmen for the 21 RRBs, he said it was done with great care after a scrutiny of their records.
