YSRCP demands Lokesh’s resignation, CBI probe over teacher recruitment lapses

Follow TNM's WhatsApp channel for news updates and story links.YSR Congress Party Lok Sabha MPs Maddila Gurumoorthy and Tanuja Rani, and Rajya Sabha MP Golla Babu Rao, on Wednesday, July 29, demanded the immediate resignation of Andhra Pradesh Education Minister Nara Lokesh, alleging large-scale corruption and irregularities in the 2025 District Selection Committee (DSC) teacher recruitment process. They also demanded a comprehensive CBI probe into the matter. The party has also announced a state-wide agitation with the same demands. The Mega DSC 2025 exam was a massive recruitment drive to fill over 16,000 teacher posts in Andhra Pradesh. Over 3 lakh candidates appeared for the exam. The recruitment was one of the major campaign promises of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) before being voted to power in 2024. YSRCP Krishna district president and former Minister Perni Venkatramaiah (Nani) alleged that the teacher recruitment process was compromised from the outset by replacing the DSC Convener appointed during the previous YSRCP government, and concentrating both question paper preparation and examination management under State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT). He said confidential work, including uploading the question paper preparation and digitisation, was entrusted to outsourced employees, alleging that this created the possibility of a paper leak. He alleged that one such employee, Purama Naveen, later emerged as a district topper before his appointment was cancelled and a revised merit list was issued. He also questioned why merit lists were never displayed at Collectorates. Addressing a press conference at Andhra Bhavan in Delhi on July 29, the YSRCP MPs also alleged that the government violated norms by sidelining the DSC Convener and entrusting the conduct of the examination to the SCERT Director. They questioned the case of Purama Naveen, an outsourced SCERT employee who allegedly secured top ranks in DSC. They said his subsequent removal from the merit list, denial of a call letter and disappearance of related data pointed to an attempt to suppress evidence. The MPs also alleged that the government manipulated sports quota rules through a set of government orders, enabling irregular appointments. They alleged that national-level medal winners were ignored while candidates who had merely participated in events received jobs. Demanding Lokesh's resignation on moral grounds, the MPs called for an impartial CBI or independent agency probe, strict action against those responsible and justice for nearly 3.5 lakh DSC aspirants.