Opposition Chief Whip and National Citizen Party Convener Nahid Islam on Tuesday demanded that the government withdraw the increased weight given to viva marks for government job exams.

In a Facebook post from his verified account, Nahid said the proposal to increase the viva marks must be withdrawn and the matter reconsidered before the gazette is published.

He also demanded that the proposal to reduce the pass marks for written exams be scrapped, viva marks be kept within a reasonable limit, a clear roadmap for reforming examination security be published, a specific assessment framework for vivas be maintained, and a more centralised and transparent system be created for recruitment examinations for grades 11 to 20 of government jobs.

“We would like to remind this government that the July uprising began precisely in opposition to discriminatory recruitment processes in jobs. Therefore, we urge the government not to take any decision to introduce a system that could create discrimination anew,” he wrote.

Earlier, the Secretary Committee on Administrative Improvement approved a proposal to amend relevant rules to increase viva marks by up to 400 percent.

It also approved a proposal lowering the written test pass mark for recruitment to grades 11-20.

The committee had initially met on Sunday, chaired by Cabinet Secretary Nasimul Ghani.

During a point of order in Parliament on Tuesday, Jamaat MP Shafiqul Islam Masud of Patuakhali-2 also opposed the proposed changes, saying they could undermine transparency.

In his post, Nahid said, “The proposal to increase the marks for the viva in government job recruitment by up to 400 percent has raised major new questions about the recruitment system.”

He said that after the July uprising, young people expected the government job recruitment system to become more transparent.

Opportunities to select qualified candidates through examinations would increase. There would be guarantees that lobbying, political identity or personal connections could not play a role in anyone securing a job, he wrote.

“However, according to information published in the media, the Administrative Development-related Secretary Committee has approved a draft proposal to increase the marks for the oral examination several times over for government jobs in grades 11 to 20.”

He said the proposal had not yet been published in the form of a gazette, which meant the government could still reconsider the matter.

He said the Ministry of Public Administration had cautioned that unqualified candidates were gaining an advantage in examinations by using proxy candidates, artificial intelligence and electronic devices. Therefore, there was a need to increase the importance of the viva.

“Even after this argument, several questions remain. How are proxy candidates entering examination centres? How are candidates entering examination halls with electronic devices?”

Nahid urged the government to further strengthen examination security, saying issues such as biometric verification, strict monitoring at examination centres, device detection, question paper management and taking action against individuals involved in fraud needed to be addressed first.

He said that if there were weaknesses in examination management, it would not be right to place their impact on job seekers.

He called on the government to design assessment methods for both the written examination and viva in such a way that a candidate’s result could be verified as much as possible.

“The viva will remain; there is a need for it to remain. But whether it is safe to give the viva board such a large share of control over the result by allocating 40 or 50 marks to the viva is something that needs to be discussed among the relevant parties,” he wrote.

The NCP convener said that for many, a government job examination means the future of themselves and their families.

“Therefore, transparency at every stage of recruitment is essential.”

According to information from the Ministry of Public Administration, there are currently around 20 lakh government posts in the civil administration, with third- and fourth-class employees accounting for nearly 13.25 lakh.