Under attack from the Congress-led Opposition and its own allies LJP and JD (U) for advertising 45 government posts without the benefit of Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe and OBC quotas, the Government on Tuesday rolled back the plan to induct private sector specialists to key central positions asking the UPSC to cancel the lateral entry advertisements issued on August 17.
In a letter to UPSC Chairperson Preeti Sudan, Minister for Department of Personnel and Training Jitendra Singh said, “It is important that the constitutional mandate towards social justice is upheld so that deserving candidates from marginalized communities get their rightful representation in the government services.”
“Since these positions have been treated as specialized and designated as single-cadre posts, there has been no provision for reservation in these appointments,” he said in the letter. The minister also recalled the history of the lateral entry plan saying it as a principle lateral entry was endorsed by the second Administrative Reforms Commission, which was constituted in 2005 and chaired by Congress veteran Veerappa Moily.
The minister added that while most of the major lateral entries before 2014 (when Narendra Modi became PM) were made in an ad hoc manner, “including cases of alleged favouritism, efforts of our government have been to make the process institutionally driven, transparent and open.”
Earlier BJP ally and Union Minister Chirag Paswan voiced concern over making any appointments in government posts without providing reservation, as the political row over lateral entry escalated, with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi alleging it was an “attack” on the Dalits, OBCs and adivasis.
The Centre on its part accused the Congress of making misleading claims on the biggest tranche of lateral recruitment in bureaucracy being undertaken by it, and asserted that the move will not affect the recruitment of SC/STs in the all India services.
On August 17, the UPSC issued an advertisement seeking applications for “talented and motivated Indian nationals for Lateral Recruitment” to the posts of joint secretary, director, and deputy secretary in 24 central ministries. The advertisement created a political furore with the Opposition and key allies of the BJP—the JD(U) and the LJP— opposing the move.
