In yet another embarrassment to the former HRD Minister Smriti Irani, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday rejected the name of the candidate forwarded by the Irani-led Human Resources Development Ministry for the post of CBSE Chairman lying vacant since December 2014.
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) headed by Prime Minister did not accept the proposal in the name of Sarvendra Vikram Bahadur Singh which was forwarded by HRD Ministry when Smriti Irani was at the helm. This was the third futile attempt by the HRD Ministry to appoint a new CBSE chief.
Singh was Irani's top choice for the position and the HRD Ministry had earlier this year forwarded his name to DoPT. After the recent Cabinet reshuffle, Irani is now the Textiles Minister while Prakash Javadekar has joined as the new HRD minister.
"The ACC has not accepted the proposal to appoint Sarvendra Vikram Bahadur Singh as the CBSE chief. It has also been decided that the post will be filled under the Central Staffing Scheme," a HRD Ministry spokesperson said.
Officials said the ministry has received a letter from the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) in this regard.