'You are throwing Mr Moily, Congress under the bus': BJP fires back at Rahul Gandhi over lateral entry

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday hit back at Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi for saying the lateral entry into government jobs is an attack on Dalits, OBCs, and Adivasis. 

BJP's IT Cell head Amit Malviya said it was the Congress-led UPA, which developed the concept of lateral entry. "The second Admin Reforms Commission (ARC) was established in 2005 when UPA was in power, and senior Congress leader Veerappa Moily chaired it."

"The NDA has simply created a transparent method to implement the recommendations of UPA period ARC, which suggested recruiting experts fill the gaps in roles that require specialised knowledge," Malviya said.  

"All recruitments are being done through UPSC, in a transparent and fair manner, as per extant rules and guidelines. Therefore, in order to politicise the issue and blame the current dispensation, you are throwing Mr Moily and the Congress under the bus," the BJP leader responded to a tweet by Gandhi. 

Gandhi slammed the Centre invited applications to recruit 45 specialists in key posts of joint secretaries, directors, and deputy secretaries in different central ministries. Such posts are filled by the officers of all-India services -- the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Police Service (IPS), and Indian Forest Service (IFoS) -- and Group A services, among others. 

"Lateral entry is an attack on Dalits, OBCs, and Adivasis," he said, adding that BJP's "distorted version of Ram Rajya seeks to destroy the Constitution and snatch reservations from Bahujans". 

Gandhi said the underprivileged are not represented in all the country's top posts, including the top bureaucracy. Instead of improving it, he said, they are being pushed further away from the top posts through lateral entry. "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," he alleged. 

While the INDIA bloc leaders opposed the move, some top voices have backed the lateral entry. Spiritual guru Sadhguru said this was a welcome step to invigorate the administrative systems with renewed energy and efficiency. "Infusion of new talent into administration is vital at this point in the growth of Bharat, as real talent may not have the endurance to put itself through the process of administrative services." 

The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) on Saturday advertised 45 posts -- 10 of joint secretaries and 35 of directors/deputy secretaries -- to be filled through the lateral entry mode on a contract basis. It is the biggest tranche of lateral recruitment being undertaken by the Centre.