BS Bassi appointed as UPSC member, AAP says move proves he is 'BJP's senior spokesperson'

After BS Bassi was appointed a member of UPSC on Tuesday, AAP said the move proves that "BJP's senior spokesperson" has been "obliged" by the government.

UPSC is a Constitutional post, with a five year tenure.  The Government cleared the name of 60-year-old Bassi as member of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), which conducts the civil services examination to select IAS and IPS officers among others. The Commission has a maximum strength of 10 members besides a Chairperson. "Appointment is the prerogative of the government. This has become clear on whose instructions Mr Bassi was working and he has been obliged. 

"The AAP has been saying very categorically that Mr Bassi was acting as the senior spokesperson of the BJP. So his appointment with the UPSC as a member proves the fact that he was and he is the senior spokesperson of the BJP, which is why he has been appointed," AAP leader Ashutosh said. 

BS Bassi, who had a controversial tenure as Delhi Police Commissioner with frequent run-ins with the AAP government, was today appointed a member of UPSC, a Constitutional post, with a five year tenure. 

Bassi's tenure as Delhi Police Commissioner, especially towards the end, had come for criticism after the arrest of Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union (JNUSU) President Kanhaiya Kumar over sedition row. The former police Chief was involved in a running battle with the AAP government led by Arvind Kejriwal with five of its legislators arrested under different counts during Bassi's tenure.