- By Vivek Raj
- Sat, 20 Jul 2024 11:08 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
Manoj Soni, Chairman of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), has resigned from his post, citing personal reasons. Soni, who took office on May 16, 2023, was expected to serve until May 15, 2029. His resignation, submitted about two weeks ago, is yet to be accepted by higher authorities as reported by news agency PTI.
Sources report that Soni's decision to resign is unrelated to recent controversies surrounding the UPSC and is not connected to the case of probationary IAS officer Puja Khedkar, who is under investigation for allegedly forging documents to secure her position.
His resignation is "not in any way connected to controversies and allegations surrounding the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) after probationary IAS officer Puja Khedkar issue came to the fore,” reported PTI.
Who Is Manoj Soni?
Manoj Soni assumed the role of UPSC chairman on May 16, 2023, with his term originally set to end on May 15, 2029. According to reports, he wishes to devote more time to Anoopam Mission, a branch of the Swaminarayan Sect in Gujarat. Soni became a monk in the Mission after receiving diksha in 2020.
Soni is known for his close association with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who appointed him as the Vice-Chancellor of Vadodara’s MS University in 2005. At 40 years old, he became the youngest Vice-Chancellor in the country. Before joining UPSC in June 2017, Soni served three terms as Vice-Chancellor in two universities in Gujarat. He was the Vice-Chancellor of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Open University (BAOU) for two terms until 2015.
A scholar of political science with specialisation in international relations, Soni taught international relations at Sardar Patel University (SPU), Vallabh Vidyanagar between 1991 and 2016, except for the period when he served as Vice-Chancellor of the two universities.
The sources clarified that Soni's resignation is unrelated to the recent controversy involving trainee IAS officer Puja Khedkar. Khedkar allegedly forged identity papers and presented a disability certificate to secure her position in the service. The UPSC has registered a criminal case against Khedkar and issued a show-cause notice for the cancellation of her candidature from the Civil Services Examination, 2022.
Following this incident, social media has been rife with allegations of other candidates forging documents to benefit from reservations for Scheduled Castes/Tribes, Other Backward Classes, Economically Weaker Sections (EWS), and Persons with Benchmark Disabilities (PwBD).