Supreme Court Exonerates Arunachal Pradesh PSC Member Mepung Tadar Bage In 2022 Paper Leak Case

The Supreme Court on Thursday (Aug. 28) exonerated Mepung Tadar Bage, a Member of the Arunachal Pradesh Public Service Commission (APPSC), of all allegations of “misbehaviour” in connection with the 2022 Assistant Engineer (Civil) mains examination paper leak. Answering the Presidential reference under Article 317(1) of the Constitution, the Court conducted a fact-finding inquiry into six charges framed against her and found that none of the allegations were proved against her. The Court added that the charges levelled against her were not in her personal capacity, but general allegations which were not substantiated by cogent evidence. Highlighting the minimal judicial interference in inquiry proceedings, the court said that when the inquiry results in removal from the constitutional office than the inquiry must be treated with abundant caution. “Indeed, it is true that the members of the Public Service Commission must be put to higher standards and their conduct must be unimpeachable, but where the consequence of our fact-finding inquiry would be the removal of the Chairman / Member from a constitutional office, we must be abundantly cautioned and tread carefully. In the present case, after appreciation of evidence, we can see that from the very inception, from the report of the Inquiry Committee, no specific allegation against the Respondent qua any of the six charges was levelled.”, the court said. The bench of Justices JK Maheshwari and Aravind Kumar also criticised the State Government's stance, observing that both the Chief Minister and Governor had sought resignations of Members despite the Inquiry Committee not personally indicting them. The Court pointed out the inconsistency of allowing other Members to later hold high offices while pressing for Ms. Bage's removal. “In our opinion, these letters further make it clear that the State dealt with the matter with a prejudice that the Members of the Commission were responsible for the paper leakage without sufficient material or evidence to reach such a conclusion. These letters were toned in a manner that it was absolutely imperative for the Members to resign and to constitute a new Commission for resolving the issues of confidentiality.”, the court said. The Court said that nothing was found against the Respondent that she failed to discharge her official duties and stressed the role of collective responsibility in the functioning of the commission. “Merely because responsibility was given to the Respondent to look into legal matters, would not make her responsible for every act conducted by the APPSC. While it could be said that it is the bounden duty of each member of a Public Service Commission to maintain utmost sincerity and ethics and to ensure absolute confidentiality in the work of the Commission, in this regard, nothing is on record to show that specifically it is the Respondent who has failed in the discharge of her duty by not ensuring the confidentiality. As a member of the APPSC, the Respondent was responsible for the work of the Commission and its duties coextensive with the Chairman and other Members, but she cannot be held liable in her individual capacity by carrying the weight of the entire Commission's responsibilities exclusively.”, the court said. “When there is no evidence linking the present Respondent to the leakage of the question paper of the Mains Examination, summarily holding her responsible and seeking to remove her from office on the pretext of not maintaining confidentiality in the work of the Commission, it would further erode the roots of the Constitutional intent of Article 317 to protect the Members of the Public Service Commission from political pressure. It cannot be lost sight of the fact that as per the allegations, the working of the Commission is alleged to have been marred with irregularities from as far back as in 2017. Admittedly, the APPSC exemplified institutional lethargy in bringing about new guidelines for conduct of examination, but the Respondent joined the Commission as a Member in 2021, and the incident of paper leakage occurred in 2022. She was required, as a member of the Public Service Commission, to be exemplary in her conduct, but she could not have been expected to right all wrongs which had been perpetrated in the APPSC prior to her joining or to single-handedly ensure that new guidelines are framed and the entire examination process is reformed. There is nothing to show that her conduct after joining in the form of any act or omission contributed in any way to bringing disrepute to the APPSC.”, the court added. “Therefore, in our view, the reference made by the Hon'ble President of India for the charges as alleged are not based on specific allegations against the Respondent Ms. Mepung Tadar Bage in her individual or official capacity. The allegations which are general in nature, have not even been substantiated by bringing any cogent evidence before us and as such we are of the...

Supreme Court Exonerates Arunachal Pradesh PSC Member Mepung Tadar Bage In 2022 Paper Leak Case

Yash Mittal

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