Srinagar: Hundreds of candidates preparing for the Civil Services Exam in Jammu and Kashmir were left without their dreams when their demands for age relaxation were ignored. The new upper age limit of 32 years prevented many candidates from appearing in the exam. This issue has sparked a major political controversy between the state government and the Lieutenant Governor’s office.
Thousands of candidates appeared for the exam conducted by the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission on Sunday, December 7th. The advertisement notification for these exams was issued in August this year. The maximum age limit for the general category was set at 32 years. Previously, this limit was 37 years. In 2022, the age limit was reduced to 32 years for the general category, while it remained at 37 years for reserved categories.
Candidates who had crossed the age limit were demanding relaxation, as they did last year. They had been on a hunger strike in the cities of Jammu and Srinagar since December 5, but their demands were not met. The state government granted a one-time age relaxation of up to 37 years.
LG Office-CM Clash:
The age relaxation issue sparked a war of words on social media between the ruling party and the Lieutenant Governor’s office. The Lieutenant Governor’s office stated that the Lieutenant Governor had raised some questions on the Chief Minister’s file sent on December 2, but the Chief Minister’s office did not respond to them in a timely manner until December 6, the day before the exam.
Political atmosphere heated up:
Opposition MLA Sajad Lone, president of the People’s Conference, accused the elected government led by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah of “shattering the dreams” of candidates seeking age relaxation.
Lone asked the Chief Minister why the government kept the matter pending until the day of the exam when the notification was issued in August. “The Chief Minister had enough time to resolve this issue, but he jeopardized the careers of candidates who could have passed the exam,” Lone said at a press conference. Lone demanded a detailed explanation from the Chief Minister regarding the delays alleged by the Lieutenant Governor’s office.
Lone said, “Even in a Union Territory, the Chief Minister’s position is at stake. If the Chief Minister can’t grant age relaxation to candidates, how can he help resolve major issues? The Chief Minister is hiding behind excuses.”
A disgruntled MP from his own party, Agha Ruhullah Mehdi, had also demanded the postponement of the exam, citing travel disruptions caused by Indigo Airlines and the age relaxation. Previously, Bharatiya Janata Party MLA and Leader of the Opposition Sunil Sharma and People’s Democratic Party MLA Waheed Parra had also raised the issue with the Lieutenant Governor, demanding age relaxation.
