UPSC Chairman Manoj Soni Resigns Five Years Ahead Of Tenure End; ‘Nudged Out’, Says Congress

New Delhi: Chairman of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Manoj Soni has resigned citing personal reasons before the expiry of his tenure in May 2029, national media reported quoting official sources on Saturday.

The report further stated that his decision to resign is “not in any way connected to controversies and allegations surrounding the UPSC after probationary IAS officer Puja Khedkar issue came to the fore’. It added that he had tendered his resignation citing personal reasons over a fortnight back as he was not keen to continue as the UPSC chairman and wanted to devote more time to “socio-religious activities”.

An eminent educationist, Soni took over as a member of the Commission on June 28, 2017. He took oath as the UPSC chairman on May 16, 2023, and his term was to end on May 15, 2029.

The news of his resignation has come a day after UPSC informed about lodging a criminal case against Khedkar for allegedly forging identity papers, misrepresenting and falsifying facts to obtain extra attempts in the Civil Services Examination-2022, beyond the prescribed limit, and taking steps to debar her from future selections.

Reacting to the development, the Congress said he was apparently “nudged out” given the current controversy in which the UPSC is involved. Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh also said the sanctity and autonomy of all Constitutional bodies have been badly damaged since 2014 — the year Narendra Modi became Prime Minister.

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