“Last year, I attended the army recruitment rally at Hakimpet. They did not ask for a character certificate to take part in the rally. This time too, I carried all documents, but was sent back for not furnishing a character certificate,” said Naveen Y, a resident of Mellacheruvu, Suryapet.
Another candidate, Mohan L from Thungathurthy in Suryapet, who too did not possess a character certificate, was seen waiting near the ground even after the last batch took off for the running test. He was hoping against hope that he would be called to participate.
“Earlier, they would ask for this certificate only during the medical test. Even then, they would provide time to produce the document. Now, they just sent us back. There was no time to go home and return with the document as we were asked to report at midnight,” said Mohan, adding that few students who did not have Covid-19 vaccination certificates were allowed to participate in the last edition.
Of thousands of candidates, who reached Sri Venkateswara Degree College grounds, Suryapet, last night, at least 500 candidates were barred from the recruitment rally as they did not carry a character certificate. Though a few among them had the certificate, it was not considered valid or properly formatted.
Candidates said, the admit card specifically mentioned documents like SSC memo, Aadhaar, caste certificate and transfer certificate, not character certificate.
Officials present at the venue said, key documents, including character certificates, were mentioned in the website. They said, candidates had to obtain a form from mee seva, fill details and get it signed by the tahsildar and local police.
On Sunday too, the problem is likely to fester as several aspirants who did not carry character certificates.
“Only after reaching the venue, I got to know that a character certificate was mandatory. There is no time to go back and get one. I hope they will allow me to join the rally,” said Shiva B, a resident of Remaddula, Wanaparthy.
