Amendments in the Central Superior Services were made without seeking approval of the government, claims the new report of Federal Investigation Agency.
In its detailed report issued on Sunday, FIA remarked that the board introduced changes in the rules for appearing without apprising the federal government in 2013. As per the new rules, candidates were acquired to score 33% in optional subjects and 50% in compulsory subjects. Consequently, the passing ratio dropped and several seats were left vacant. This year, only 3% of candidates were able to clear the competitive examinations.
Committee on Cabinet Secretariat in its meeting on Wednesday discussed the report by FIA pertaining to Amendments made in Rule 11(i) of the qualifying criteria of Central Superior Services (CSS) Examination 2013 and 2014 by FPSC without seeking approval of the competent authority pic.twitter.com/Z6Qa8MuFW5
— Senator Muhammad Talha Mahmood (@senatorMtalha) September 4, 2019
Federal Investigative Agency, however, did not mention the statements of the then Assistant Director Aqeel Ahmed. It urged the Federal Public Service Commission to initiate an inquiry in the matter and held accountable the responsible.
Since the changes in 2012-2013, the passing rate declined as fewer candidates managed to clear examinations.
The committee expressed serious concerns on the change of rules including Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs, Ali Muhammad Khan.
Before changes in CSS examination, the candidates were supposed to obtain 40 percent marks in compulsory subjects, and 33% percent marks in optional subjects with an overall percentage of 50%.
According to the previous rules, the candidates were promoted to the interview stage, even if they failed to secure 33% in any of the optional subjects but had an overall percentage of 50% or above. This provision is discarded in the new setup, where the inability to secure less than 33% percent marks in any of the optional subjects is considered failed and deprives candidates of pursuing their selection process.
The matter came under serious scrutiny during the meeting of the Senate Standing Committee held in March. The committee expressed serious concerns on the change of rules including Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs, Ali Muhammad Khan.
Read more: The quality of ongoing CSS interviews
Minister Ali Muhammad Khan informed the committee that the competent authority did not obtain formal permission from the preceding government. He assured that the misconduct would be rectified. Secretary FPSC asserted that due to the current laws several candidates were unable to qualify examinations in 2013. Four candidates suffered in 2014, another four in 2015, while few other candidates suffered in subsequent years.