Opposition Slams Lateral Entry Hiring; BJP Defends as Transparency Measure

GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 19th August. Opposition parties, including Congress, Samajwadi Party (SP), and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), strongly slammed the government’s move to hire public servants through lateral entry, claiming it undermines reservation rights for SCs, STs, and OBCs. They also accused the BJP of using the process to appoint ideological allies to key positions.

Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi condemned the initiative, calling it “Modi’s assurance for ending reservation,” and vowed that the INDIA bloc would oppose the move. Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav announced plans for an agitation starting on October 2.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge alleged the lateral entry scheme was part of a larger conspiracy by the BJP to exclude marginalized groups from government jobs, while BSP chief Mayawati termed the move “illegal and unconstitutional.”

The BJP swiftly responded, with Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw calling the opposition’s stance “hypocrisy.”

He reminded critics that the concept of lateral entry was originally proposed by the Congress-led UPA government, referencing recommendations from the Second Administrative Reforms Commission (ARC), established in 2005.

BJP leader Amit Malviya dismissed the opposition’s claims, accusing Gandhi of spreading lies. Malviya highlighted multiple office memorandums from 2016, 2019, and 2020 that emphasized strict adherence to reservation guidelines in the lateral hiring process, ensuring SC, ST, and OBC quotas are maintained.

On Saturday, the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) advertised 45 posts—10 joint secretaries and 35 directors/deputy secretaries—to be filled via lateral entry on a contractual basis, marking the largest such recruitment drive to date.

The lateral entry scheme, first introduced in 2018 under Prime Minister Modi’s government, allows domain experts from the public and private sectors to apply for senior government roles, aiming to improve administrative efficiency. According to government sources, this initiative builds on ARC recommendations and follows a transparent and rigorous selection process.