NEW DELHI: UPSC chairman Manoj Soni has resigned citing personal reasons before the expiry of his tenure in May 2029, official sources said on Saturday.His resignation is “not in any way connected to controversies and allegations surrounding the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) after probationary IAS officer Puja Khedkar issue came to the fore,” they said.”The UPSC chairman had tendered his resignation citing personal reasons over a fortnight back. It is yet to be accepted,” a source said.Eminent educationist Soni, 59, 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.Sources said Soni was not keen on becoming the UPSC chairman and had requested to be relieved.However, his request was not accepted then, the sources said.They said Soni has now desired to devote more time to “socio-religious activities.”The development assumes significance as the UPSC on Friday said it has lodged a criminal case against Khedkar for faking her identity to fraudulently avail attempts in the civil services examination beyond eligibility, and taken steps to debar her from future selections.Since Khedkar’s case of misusing power and privileges came to the fore, social media has been abuzz with claims and counter-claims on the use of fake certificates by serving Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and Indian Police Service (IPS) officers, among others.
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