Congress, BJP spar over lateral entry issue, SP warns of agitation

The opposition parties on Sunday slammed the move to hire public servants through lateral entry, claiming it will snatch reservations from SCs, STs and OBCs, but the BJP hit back stating the NDA government was bringing transparency to this mode of recruitment started by the Congress-led UPA.

The Congress, Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) also alleged that it was a "conspiracy" by the BJP to appoint its ideological allies to high posts through the back door.

"Privatisation of the IAS is Modi's assurance for ending reservation," Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi alleged, adding the INDIA bloc will strongly oppose this "anti-national step". Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav warned of an agitation on the issue from October 2.

Countering the charge, the BJP cited office memorandums, including the one issued by the Union Home Ministry in 2020, that emphasised the need for strict adherence to the reservation guidelines in lateral entries, and asked Gandhi to "stop ...