A member of State Public Service Commission may be removed by who among the following persons?

The correct answer is C. Under Article 317, a member of a State Public Service Commission can be removed by the President only for misbehaviour, and only after the Supreme Court, on a reference from the President, inquires into the matter and reports that the member should be removed. The President then passes the removal order.

• A is wrong. Impeachment in the Vidhan Sabha is not the mechanism for PSC members. The Vidhan Sabha has no role in their removal.
• B is wrong. The Governor does not remove a PSC member after a Supreme Court inquiry. Under Article 317(2), the Governor can only suspend a member and refer the matter to the President, pending the inquiry.
• D is wrong. The High Court has no role in this process. The inquiry is always conducted by the Supreme Court.

The core concept is the constitutional protection of commission members, which parallels the removal of UPSC members under Article 317 and the independence of constitutional bodies in general. It connects to Mains GS-II on institutions and to the debate on the independence of recruitment bodies. Note that the Article 317 procedure for states is the same in substance, with the President as the removing authority and the Supreme Court as the inquiring body.

Trap: Candidates often pick B because the Governor is the state's constitutional head and appears in most state-level questions. Here the Governor's role is limited to suspension, and removal rests with the President.