The Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Sunday alleged that the Narendra Modi government's lateral entry policy into senior positions in bureaucracy was an “anti-national step“ as it was “openly snatching away” the reservation for Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in government jobs.
Mr. Gandhi alleged that the Prime Minister was “attacking the Constitution by recruiting public servants through the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh instead of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC)“.
“Privatisation of the IAS [Indian Administrative Service] is Modi’s guarantee for ending reservation,” Mr. Gandhi said in a post on social media platform X.
The LoP’s sharp attack came a day after the UPSC advertised vacancies for 45 posts, including Joint Secretaries, Directors, and Deputy Secretaries in different Central Ministries through the lateral entry mode. This is the biggest tranche of lateral recruitment being undertaken by the Centre. Usually, such posts are filled by officers of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Police Service (IPS), and other Group A services.
“Reservation of SC, ST and OBC classes is being openly snatched away by recruiting through lateral entry on important posts in various ministries of the central government. I have always said that the underprivileged are not represented in all the country’s top posts, including the top bureaucracy. Instead of improving it, they are being pushed further away from the top posts through lateral entry,” Mr. Gandhi said.
“This is a robbery of the rights of talented youth preparing for UPSC and an attack on the concept of social justice including reservation for the underprivileged,” the Congress leader added.
Mr. Gandhi said that the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) served as a vivid example of what corporate interests could do if they occupied key government positions. “...for the first time a person from the private sector was made the chairperson,” Mr. Gandhi said, referring to allegations of conflict of interest against SEBI chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch.
“The INDIA [Indian National Developmental, Inclusive Alliance] bloc will strongly oppose this anti-national step that hurts both the administrative structure and social justice,” Mr. Gandhi said.
