IRDAI nullifies unequal recruitment process

IRDAI has invalidated the recruitment process for different posts after allegedly being alarmed over perceived anomalies. It has also made a decision of sprucing up internal governance practices pertaining to issues like whistle blowers and sensitive posts. Under the leadership of its chairman Subhash Chandra Khuntia, IRDAI is also weighing options to order an inquiry into alleged abnormalities in recruitment in the past that involved relaxations, corrigendum on eligibility criteria and cancellation of recruitments in deviation from the personnel and training department’s (DoPT) instruction. IRDAI will also be looking into a wide range of complaints it received from within and outside pertaining to alleged discriminatory clauses in some recruitment notifications in order to favour certain candidates, including some working with the IRDAI on deputation. “There was ambiguity in interpreting some of the eligibility criteria as mentioned in the recruitment notification,” said Khuntia. “So, it was felt advisable to cancel the process,” he added. Overall, the IRDAI wished to fill 18 posts of managers, assistant general managers, deputy general managers and general managers through a February 2018 notification. “The recruitment process for various posts notified vide notification ref. no: HR/ Recruitment/ Feb 2018 dated 16.02.2018 stands cancelled,” said a notification issued by IRDAI executive director M Pulla Rao. Several instances of violations existed pertaining to the CVC and DoPT instructions, as per which the hiring process should be shelved and the posts must be re-advertised if the response for any recruitment advertisements was poor, said a senior IRDAI officer. “There were complaints in the past of the hiring process being unfair and discriminatory with age relaxations of up to 55 years to suit certain people. In some recruitments, written tests were cancelled and the candidates were directly invited for personal interviews,” the person cited above said.