A war of words began between the Congress-led Opposition and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) after the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) issued a notification seeking applications for 45 joint secretaries, directors and deputy secretaries via lateral entry.

The advertisement drew criticism from opposition parties that claimed it undermined the reservation rights of the OBC, SC, and ST. However, the BJP hit back at the Congress and noted that the ‘hypocrisy was evident on the lateral entry matter’ as the concept was first developed under the UPA government.

How it started

It all started on August 17 when the UPSC issued the notification for “talented and motivated Indian nationals for Lateral Recruitment” to the respective posts in various ministries under the Union government.

Those with appropriate qualifications and experience from the state/UT governments, statutory organisations, research institutes, and universities can apply for these positions.

It mentions that the posts are “suitable for candidates belonging to the category of Persons with Benchmark Disability (PwBD).”

Lateral entry

The NITI Aayog, in its three-year Action Agenda, back in 2017 and the Sectoral Group of Secretaries (SGoS) on Governance in a report that was submitted in February had recommended inducting personnel at middle and senior management levels at various departments under the central government, The Indian Express reported.

The ‘lateral entrants’ will be part of the central secretariat, which earlier had only career bureaucrats coming from the All India Services/Central Civil Services. These candidates will be provided three-year contracts, which can further be extended up to five years.

The lateral entry scheme was formally introduced during Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s tenure in 2018, driven by the recognition of the need for domain experts to enhance the efficiency and responsiveness of India’s administrative machinery. However, at that time it was only for Joint Secretary level positions and other higher-level posts — Director and Deputy Secretary — were opened later, reports said.

Why was it introduced?

Minister of State for the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) Jitendra Singh had in 2019 informed the Parliament that the lateral recruitment was aimed at “achieving the twin objectives of bringing in fresh talent as well as augment the availability of manpower”.

Replying to a question in Rajya Sabha earlier this month, Singh said, “Keeping in view their specialised knowledge and expertise in the domain area, lateral recruitment at the level of Joint Secretary, Director and Deputy Secretary in Government of India, has been undertaken to appoint persons for specific assignments.”

The First ARC, established in 1966 under the chairmanship of Morarji Desai (later succeeded by K. Hanumanthaiah), laid the groundwork for future discussions on the need for specialized skills within the civil services.

The idea behind this recruitment is said to be the government’s motive to tap into individuals’ domain expertise, irrespective of whether they are career bureaucrats or not.

Total appointments so far

A total of 6,077 applications were received for the Joint Secretary-level posts during the first round that began in 2018. After the selection process, nine individuals were finally recommended for appointment in 2019.

Similar rounds were advertised in 2021 and 2023 as well.

On August 9, Jitendra Singh said that 63 appointments have been made through lateral entry during the last five years. “Presently, 57 officers occupy positions in Ministries/ Departments,” he noted.

Opposition criticises the move

Major Opposition parties have criticised this recruitment process, noting that it does not provide quotas for SC, ST and OBC candidates.

“Lateral entry is an attack on Dalits, OBCs and Adivasis. BJP’s distorted version of Ram Rajya seeks to destroy the Constitution and snatch reservations from Bahujans,” Rahul Gandhi wrote on X.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has called it a ‘part of a well-planned conspiracy’. He has claimed that the BJP is deliberately holding such recruitments so that the “SC, ST, OBC categories can be kept away from the reservation”.

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav termed the move as a ‘dirty joke’, claiming that if these 45 appointments were made through the civil services examination then around half of the openings would have been reserved for the SC, ST, and OBC candidates.

BJP hits back

Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw slammed the Opposition and said that the concept of lateral entry was developed during the UPA government.

“INC hypocrisy is evident on lateral entry matters. It was the UPA government which developed the concept of lateral entry. The second Admin Reforms Commission (ARC) was established in 2005 under the UPA government. Shri Veerappa Moily chaired it,” he wrote on X.

He added, “UPA period ARC recommended the recruitment of experts to fill the gaps in roles that require specialised knowledge. The NDA government has created a transparent method to implement this recommendation. Recruitment will be done through UPSC transparently and fairly. This reform will improve governance.”