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CID court rejects bail plea of former JPSC chairman Khiangte
The special Criminal Investigation Department (CID) court in the city, which is handling the state civil service examination irregularity case, rejected the bail petition of former Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) chairman L Khiangtem, said people close to the development on Saturday
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The special Criminal Investigation Department (CID) court in the city, which is handling the state civil service examination irregularity case, rejected the bail petition of former Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) chairman L Khiangtem, said people close to the development on Saturday.
Additional Judicial Commissioner Yogesh Kumar delivered the decision on Saturday after reserving judgment earlier in the week.
The legal battle stems from a massive cash-for-jobs and recruitment paper leak scandal. The state’s probe agency arrested Khiangte, a retired chief secretary of Jharkhand, on August 10, following hours of intensive questioning.
Investigators allege that Khiangte bypassed open tender rules to award a highly sensitive exam management contract to a Lucknow-based firm, TSR Data Processing Private Limited (TDPL), on a nomination basis. Alarmingly, the company had already been blacklisted by the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) in 2025.
The CID claims that the former chairman accepted huge financial kickbacks to orchestrate the deal. During the court hearings, Khiangte’s legal team argued that the prosecution lacked concrete evidence. They maintained that multiple raids conducted at his official Kanke Road residence yielded no incriminating materials, declaring his arrest legally flawed. However, the prosecution strongly opposed the bail, presenting a detailed case diary that highlighted systematic OMR sheet manipulation and administrative compromises.
Over twenty individuals, including intermediate staff and corporate executives, have been jailed so far. Unshaken by the lower court’s setback, the defence is preparing to scale up its legal strategy.
Speaking to the Hindustan Times, his advocate Chandana Kumari expressed her disappointment with the ruling. “We will move the high court for relief,” she stated.
Meanwhile, the rejection leaves the high-profile bureaucrat in judicial custody as public outrage and student protests continue to demand an independent probe into the state’s examination system.
