Patiala, February 14
Three members of the Punjab Public Service Commission (PPSC) today abstained from the interview held to select Block Development and Panchayat Officers (BDPOs) to protest against the ‘’manner’’ in which the PPSC was being run by its Chairman Ravinderpal Singh Sidhu.

The three members — Harjit Kaur Randhawa, R C Gupta and Amarjit Singh Chawla, in a letter to the Chairman said though they had raised certain objections regarding the interviews being held for the post through an official letter addressed to him on February 12, the suggestions were not given any importance. This they said meant that the Chairman was not ready to run the Commission according to rules and laid down procedures but according to his own whims.

The members alleged that the Chairman did not care for the adverse propaganda against the selections made by the Commission, including those for BDPOs, PCS and DSPs. They urged that the Chairman should postpone the dates for the interviews till matters, including the fairness of the conduct of the examination for the post of BDPO was sorted out at in a meeting of the Commission.

The Commission members have sent a copy of the letter written to the Chairman, to two other members — P S Dhillon and Maj Gen (retd) G S Riar also. They have also been requested not to participate in the interviews without ascertaining that there was no scope of favouritism and unfair selections. Copies of the letter have also been sent to the Chief Secretary and the Advocate General.