The Andhra Pradesh government has strongly rejected allegations circulating on social media and other media platforms over the past 10 days regarding Mega DSC 2025 recruitments, asserting that there were no irregularities in appointments, including those under the sports quota, and that the recruitment process was conducted transparently.
School Education Commissioner Thameem Ansariya and Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh (SAAP) Vice-Chairperson and Managing Director Bharani jointly addressed a media conference at Vidya Bhavan in Amaravati, where they responded to allegations concerning sports quota appointments, TET eligibility and individual candidates. Officials also warned of strict criminal action against those found harassing teachers.
Addressing questions over sports quota appointments, Bharani said selections were conducted in accordance with Central government guidelines. Before the final list was prepared, candidate details were released in a 1:5 ratio and objections were invited from August 8 to 14, 2025. She said no complaints concerning judo certificates were received during that period.
She attributed the heightened scrutiny of the recruitment process to SAAP’s decision to make extensive candidate information publicly accessible. Referring to previous recruitment exercises, including Grama/Ward Sachivalayam recruitments and earlier DSC examinations, she said they had attracted fewer public controversies because comparable details had not been placed in the public domain.
Defending SAAP’s approach, she said the authority had chosen not to conceal recruitment information. Responding to allegations of collusion with sports associations or improper external influence, she questioned whether SAAP would have uploaded candidate details and certificates online within 24 hours of being asked to do so if such collusion had occurred.
She further alleged that some individuals were using publicly available information to selectively scrutinise and target sports candidates with defamatory allegations, despite the information having been disclosed to ensure transparency and fairness.
A significant part of the controversy relates to certificates linked to the 2013 Senior Inter-District Judo Tournament in Khammam district. Media representatives alleged that four candidates obtained government teaching posts under the sports quota on the basis of certificates issued for the tournament. They further alleged that the tournament had never taken place and that individuals whose signatures appeared on the certificates had subsequently denied signing them and claimed their signatures were forged.
Responding to the allegations, Bharani said SAAP was procedurally dependent on the relevant sports association or national federation for verification of sporting credentials and could not independently certify the genuineness of such documents. During the recruitment process, the certificates submitted by the candidates were referred to the Judo Association, which officially confirmed their genuineness, and SAAP proceeded on the basis of that verification, she said.
She also pointed to the absence of objections during the recruitment grievance period. SAAP had published the tentative 1:5 candidate list and invited objections from August 8 to 14, 2025. According to her, neither the individuals now alleging that their signatures had been forged, nor other candidates or members of the public, raised objections concerning the judo certificates during that period or immediately after the final results were published.
The allegations subsequently became part of PIL No. 170, filed in the Andhra Pradesh High Court on July 23, 2026, according to the information provided at the press conference.
Explaining the difficulties involved in independently checking older sporting records, Bharani said the certificates in question relate to an event purportedly held in 2013, before the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in 2014. Following bifurcation and SAAP’s subsequent relocation from Hyderabad to Amaravati, many older physical records remained with parent bodies in Hyderabad, she said.
As a result, SAAP does not possess an exhaustive physical database covering local sporting events conducted before bifurcation, according to the Managing Director. She said independently checking historical physical records for every candidate was not practically feasible, making verification by the respective sports associations necessary for older records.
Bharani rejected allegations of collusion between SAAP and the Judo Association and noted that the matter was sub judice.
She said that, pursuant to directions issued by the High Court in PIL No. 170, a three-month vigilance enquiry was examining the Judo Association and the certificates it had issued. SAAP was cooperating with the enquiry and providing the vigilance authorities with all available records and supporting material, she said.
The State Government would comply with the High Court’s final directions after the vigilance report was submitted and would implement any action or punishment ordered by the court, she added.
Separately, officials rejected allegations concerning individual sportspersons. In the case of national-level boxer Pedda Appala Raju, they said his brother’s certificate had mistakenly been uploaded online along with his document subsequently removed Officials maintained that Pedda Appala Raju’s documents were genuine and had been verified, including through online video footage.
Officials also addressed questions over Telugu Desam Party MLA Kona Ravi Kumar signing documents as president of the Softball Association. They said the national federation had officially authorised Kona Ravi Kumar to sign the documents and maintained that this did not violate the rules.
Turning to allegations concerning Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) qualifications, Thameem Ansariya said Prabhakar, a Backward Classes candidate from Kurnool, had qualified after securing 77 marks. A three-member committee was constituted on September 5 to provide further clarity on the matter, she said.
The Commissioner also clarified that Jampala Usha, a Backward Classes candidate, had qualified in the TET in 2012 with 80 marks. There was no separate TET for language pandits at the time, and Jampala Usha’s certificate therefore remained valid, she said.
She added that the qualifications of the other candidates were also in accordance with the prescribed rules. Regarding Economically Weaker Section (EWS) certificates, she said their issuance falls within the jurisdiction of the Revenue Department and that certificates over which doubts had been raised were referred to the respective district collectors for re-examination.
The government also said it had taken serious note of an incident at a school in Kuppam on Teachers’ Day. According to the Commissioner, two individuals identified as Srikanth(Saksi Reporter) and Ganesh entered a classroom and allegedly assaulted and harassed a teacher who is a retired Army havildar, including by grabbing him by the collar.
A suo motu case was registered over the incident, she said.
The Commissioner further alleged that some people claiming to be media representatives were blackmailing teachers and warned that those involved would face strict criminal action.
The Andhra Pradesh government urged the public to refrain from making baseless allegations and said anyone possessing evidence of wrongdoing could submit a complaint to the grievance cell at Vidya Bhavan.
AP Government Clarifies Sports Quota, TET Issues in Mega DSC 2025
