 "The Centre has asked UPSC to withdraw ad for lateral entry into the bureaucracy. Representational Image/ANI")
The Centre has cancelled the recent lateral entry advertisement seeking to fill positions at various levels in the Union government. This comes after massive backlash from the opposition over the scheme. Fissures had also emerged within the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government, with some allies of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) speaking up against lateral entry into bureaucracy.
Union minister Chirag Paswan of the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) and the Janata Dal (United) had opposed the scheme, while N Chandrababu Naidu’s Telugu Desam Party (TDP) backed it.
The opposition had targeted the NDA government and called for reservations in the lateral entry into bureaucracy.
In his letter to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) chairperson , Union minister Jitendra Singh recommended the cancellation of the lateral entry ad issued last week, saying that the no reservation provision in these recruitments needs to be “reviewed and reformed in the context of” Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “focus on ensuring social justice”.
Let’s take a closer look.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsWhat is a lateral entry?
Lateral entry aims to recruit experts in different fields for vacant posts in the bureaucracy. In 2017, the NITI Aayog proposed hiring personnel from outside the All India Services/ Central Civil Services for middle and senior management levels in the central government.
These people would be domain experts and could be recruited from private companies, public sector utilities and state governments, as per an India Today report.
These ‘lateral entrants’ would be part of the central secretariat which until then had been dominated by career bureaucrats from the All India Services/ Central Civil Services.
These experts are initially recruited for three years, with the provision of an extendable tenure of five years.
About 63 people have been hired through lateral entry into the bureaucracy since 2018. This included eight joint secretaries in 2019 and three joint secretaries and 27 directors in 2022, according to the India Today report.
Explaining the logic behind the lateral entry, the then Minister of State for the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) Jitendra Singh told the Rajya Sabha in 2019 that “lateral recruitment is aimed at achieving the twin objectives of bringing in fresh talent as well as augment the availability of manpower”.
How a political row erupted
On Saturday (August 17), the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) published 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 ministries of the Union government.
As per Indian Express, experienced and qualified individuals from State/UT governments, PSUs, statutory organisations, research institutes, private sector and universities were eligible to apply.
The ad also noted that all posts were “suitable for candidates belonging to the category of Persons with Benchmark Disability (PwBD).”
The opposition leaders, including Congress’ Rahul Gandhi and Samajwadi Party’s Akhilesh Yadav, slammed the lateral entry scheme for the lack of reservations for Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), and Other Backward Classes (OBC) candidates.
NDA divided over the move
Voices emerged from within the NDA criticising the lateral entry into bureaucracy.
Union minister Chirag Paswan reportedly became the first leader from the ruling coalition to oppose the scheme in the wake of the ad.
Speaking to PTI, the LJP (Ram Vilas) president said, “My party’s stance on such appointments is absolutely clear. Wherever there are government appointments, the provisions of reservation must be followed. There is no ifs and buts in this.”
“The way this information has come to light is also a matter of concern for me because I am a part of this government and have the platform to raise these issues,” he added. “Speaking on behalf of my party, we are absolutely not in favour of this. This is completely wrong, and I will raise this matter before the government.”
Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) has also criticised the Centre’s lateral entry scheme. “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,” the party’s national spokesperson KC Tyagi told Indian Express.
Tyagi said that with this policy, the government had given an issue to the opposition on a platter. “Those opposed to the NDA will misuse this advertisement. Rahul Gandhi will become a champion of the socially disadvantaged. We should not be giving a weapon in the hands of the Opposition,” he added.
Hindustani Awam Morcha’s Jitan Ram Manjhi was also reportedly not hunky dory about the UPSC’s decision. As per Deccan Herald, he said the government should support reservation provisions, adding that he would take up the issue with the government.
“There is no grand design in this to snatch away reservations for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. If there is any talk of taking away reservations, then I am in the Cabinet and we will talk to the BJP,” he said.
The TDP, on the other hand, came out in support of the decision. TDP national general secretary Nara Lokesh told Indian Express, “Several of these (government) departments need expertise and we are happy it (lateral entry) is being brought in. We have always been in favour of taking expertise from the private sector into the government. The government should learn from the private and vice versa. We support this move by the Central government as it will enhance the quality of governance and delivery of services to the common citizen.”
Opposition trains guns on govt
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi led the opposition’s attack on the Centre over the UPSC’s decision, dubbing the move as “an attack on Dalits, OBCs and Adivasis”.
He alleged the “BJP’s distorted version of Ram Rajya seeks to destroy the Constitution and snatch reservations from Bahujans”.
In a post on X, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge explained “why the Modi government’s Lateral Entry provision (was) an attack on the Constitution”. He alleged that “instead of filling jobs in government departments, BJP has eliminated 5.1 lakh posts in the last 10 years by selling off Government of India’s shares in PSUs alone”.
“There has been an increase of 91 per cent in casual and contract recruitment. SC, ST, OBC posts have been reduced by 1.3 lakh by 2022-23,” the Congress chief said.
However, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor backed the lateral entry policy, calling it an “indispensable method for the government to acquire expertise”.
INDIA bloc leader and Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav said his party would launch a nationwide movement against the scheme on October 2 if the government does not take it back. Yadav called the policy a “conspiracy by the BJP to appoint their ideological friends on top posts under the UPSC”.
“In fact, the whole plan is to snatch away reservation and the rights of the ‘PDA (Pichhda, Dalits, Adivasis)’. Now that the BJP has realised that the PDA have risen against their plan to change the Constitution, they want to deny reservation surreptitiously by allowing lateral entry,” the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister was quoted as saying by Indian Express.
Tamil Nadu chief minister and DMK leader MK Stalin said lateral entry was a “direct assault” on social justice. “The Union Govt must halt this practice, prioritise filling backlog vacancies for OBCs and SC/STs, and ensure fair and equitable promotions,” he said on Tuesday, as per The Hindu.
Centre’s response
Amid the opposition’s scathing attack, law minister Arjun Ram Meghwal hit out at Rahul Gandhi for alleging that the government was trying to bypass reservation through lateral entry.
“Whatever appointments or recruitments or selections are to be done, UPSC will do it. Where is the issue of BJP, RSS in this? Baseless allegations are being made,” Meghwal told PTI on Monday.
He also reminded Rahul that former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was appointed economic advisor to the finance ministry in 1971 through lateral entry.
“Rahul Gandhi alleges that RSS people are recruited through lateral entry. We want to say that Dr Manmohan Singh is also an example of lateral entry. In 1976, how did you appoint him financial secretary? Your Planning Commission’s vice-chairman was also on a lateral entry. You will find hundreds of such examples…you started lateral entry,” Meghwal was quoted as saying by ANI.
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw called the opposition’s criticism of lateral entry “hypocrisy”, saying it was the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) which introduced the concept.
He said the NDA only made the scheme “transparent”.
With inputs from agencies