From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Panaji

Panaji, May 30: Goa government today ordered vigilance inquiry into the job recruitments in the Health department executed prior to the state legislative assembly elections, which smacked of the corruption.

Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar told reporters today that the vigilance department will inquire into every aspect of the recruitment, which was done with an eye on the elections. He said that these appointments were election related without considering the merits.

Around 292 recruitments were done prior to the March 3 elections. Parrikar said that the recruitments were done `in a hurry’ and it was `a political give and take’.

Hundreds of students had protested outside chief minister’s official residence on Tuesday agitating that Parrikar’s statement that the job recruitment done little before the elections and in violation of code of conduct would not be honoured. The youths have continued their agitation in the form of hunger strike that they began today.

“Let the vigilance department inquire into the illegalities and manipulations in these recruitments,” the chief minister said, adding that those youths who were selected for the posts would also be investigated by the vigilance department.

The chief minister alleged that there were bogus `offer of appointment’ letters distributed by a former minister in the run up for the election to garner votes.

Parrikar has said that those youths were given offer letters or appointment letters much before the code of conduct came into session would be recruited in the service.

Half a dozen government departments including Directorate of Mines and Geology, Directorate of Health Services, Electricity department and Department of Education had massive recruitment drive before the elections.

BJP, during their election campaign, had termed this recruitment drive as a fake exercise done by Congress party to win votes for the polls.