By IANS,
Chandigarh : Governor A.R. Kidwai has issued an order of suspension of the entire Haryana Public Service Commission (HPSC).
All nine members of the commission, including its chairman M.S. Saini, were Saturday suspended following the order.
The suspension orders came immediately after President Pratibha Patil accepted a presidential reference by the Haryana government, which was made in 2006, seeking removal of the entire commission.
The commission will remain suspended till the Supreme Court decides on a case before it in which the Haryana government has alleged that the commission indulged in manipulations in appointments.
Other suspended commission members include Ranbir Singh Hooda, Dunger Ram, Chhatar Singh, Om Prakash, Santosh Singh, Yudhvir Singh, Satbir Singh and Ram Kumar Kashyap.
All the nine members of the commission, which makes selections for Class I jobs in the state, were appointed by the previous Om Prakash Chautala government in the state prior to March 2005 when the present Bhupinder Singh Hooda-led Congress government took over in the state.
The Hooda government was at loggerheads with the commission, whose members have a six-year term, and had withdrawn most posts from its purview in the last three years. Hardly any recruitment was being made by the Haryana government through the commission.
The Hooda government has, meanwhile, initiated steps to expand the commission from its present strength of nine to 13 by including four more members.
With the suspension of the present members, the government is likely to shortly appoint new members and select one of them to be the acting chairman. Pending recruitments will then be speeded up.