In the wake of the mounting objections and criticism, the Centre, on Tuesday, wrote to the chairperson of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) directing the commission to cancel the advertisement for the lateral entry. Union Minister Jitendra Singh asked UPSC to cancel the advertisement as directed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"The prime minister is of the firm belief that the process of lateral entry must be aligned with the principles of equity and social justice enshrined in our Constitution, particularly concerning the provisions of reservation," the letter from the minister to the commission read.
"Since these positions have been treated as specialized 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 prime ministers focus on ensuring social justice. Hence, I urge the UPSC to cancel the advertisement for lateral entry recruitment..."
The commission had, on Saturday, advertised for 45 posts—10 of joint secretaries and 35 of directors/deputy secretaries—to be filled through the lateral entry mode on a contract basis. This was aimed at appointing specialists, including those from the private sector, in government departments. However, the advertisement sparked a controversy, with the opposition accusing the government of seeking to snatch reservations from 'bahujans'.
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The direction to cancel the advertisement comes even as the Centre had accused the Congress of making misleading claims and asserted that the move will not affect the recruitment of SC/STs.
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had pointed out that lateral entry in bureaucracy has been happening for a long time and observed that former prime minister Manmohan Singh and Montek Singh Ahluwalia were prominent examples of such initiatives taken in the past.
It was not just the opposition that raised objections to lateral entry. BJP ally and Union Minister Chirag Paswan raised concerns over making any appointments in government posts without providing reservation. "Reservation provisions must be there in any government appointment,” he had said.