New Delhi: The central government has asked the civil services recruitment body UPSC to cancel its latest advertisement for the lateral entry scheme after two allies joined Rahul Gandhi’s dogged opposition to the plan.
The Centre has said it needs to review the lack of reservation in such appointments.
In a letter to the UPSC chairperson Tuesday, Minister of State for the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) Jitendra Singh said, “Since these positions have been treated as specialised and designated as single-cadre posts, there has been no provision for reservation in these appointments.”
“This aspect needs to be reviewed and reformed in the context of the Hon’ble Prime Minister’s focus on ensuring social justice. Hence, I urge the UPSC to cancel the advertisement for lateral entry recruitment issued on 17.8.2024. This step would be a significant advance in the pursuit of social justice and empowerment,” the letter further said.
According to sources, the government is likely to reintroduce lateral entry with reservations.
The UPSC had Saturday invited applications to 45 posts including joint secretary, director and deputy secretary under the lateral entry scheme — the largest recruitment sought by it since the launch of the scheme in 2018.
Lateral entry refers to the process of appointing individuals from outside the government to bring in domain-specific expertise and fresh perspectives. The scheme says “lateral entrants” will be appointed on contract for 3 years, which can be extended to a maximum of 5 years.
Meanwhile, Saturday’s advertisement came under widespread criticism from the Opposition, which claimed it was a way to circumvent reservation in central government positions.
So far, the government has maintained that reservation cannot apply to lateral entry since these single-cadre posts, and the contract for it, is between an individual and the government.
However, Singh’s letter Tuesday is a complete volte-face by the government in the face of a pushback not just from the Opposition, but also from NDA allies.
NDA allies JD(U) and the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) have opposed the scheme. “My party’s stance on such appointments is absolutely clear. Wherever there are government appointments, the provisions of reservation must be followed. There are no ifs and buts on this,” LJP (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan said.
Janata Dal (United) leader K.C. Tyagi told The Indian Express, “We are a party that has been asking governments to fill quotas since inception. We are followers of Ram Manohar Lohia. When people have been socially disadvantaged for centuries, why are you seeking merit? This order by the government is a matter of serious concern for us.”
He added this was handing an issue to the Opposition on a platter, and would make Rahul Gandhi a “champion for the socially disadvantaged”.
(Edited by Tikli Basu)
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Thoughts go to Rollback Sinha. In the last month, Waqf Board, Broadcasting Bill, now this. In a sense, a deepening of democracy. Gets my vote.