Skip to main content

Gujarat govt's 'political move' to appoint lokrakshak constables: HC seeks report

By Our Representative
The Gujarat High Court has issued notice to the state government regarding alleged refusal to appoint Class-III lokrakshak unarmed police constables, armed police constables and jail sepais in pursuant of advertisement by the Lokrakshak Bharti Board dated August 15, 2018 taking into account the meritorious criterion.
Justice AC Rao issued the notice after hearing senior High Court advocate Anand Yagnik, who appeared in the court on behalf the aggrieved candidates. The matter is now listed for October 6 for further hearing.
The petition, which concerned appointment of male candidates, sought “quashing” and “setting aside” of the entire recruitment process, undertaking the process of recruitment afresh, said, his clients were meritorious and yet they were denied appointment.
Alleging that the recruitment of more than 12,000 lokrakshaks was carried out by the state government in violation of judgment and order passed by a division bench of the High Court, Yagnik said, more than 5,000 women candidates were appointed after lowering the cut-off marks at the fag end of the recruitment process, that too after final selection list/merit list was published, and only appointment letters were to be issued.
Claiming that the whole process of lowering down the cut-off marks for women candidates was “absolutely illegal and unconstitutional”, he said, as many as 2,485 supernumerary posts were created only for women candidates. These posts, he added, were filled up with women candidates by adopting the policy of what is called reverse discrimination.
Calling the recruitment process and the appointments were illegal and unconstitutional, because 100% supernumerary posts were allocated to women candidates in violation of the 33% reservation for women, Yagnik said, this was done in order to “accommodate” as many general category candidates from upper castes as possible.
He said, supernumerary posts are created by way of an exception in order to meet with exigencies and not otherwise, adding, these cannot be created on such a large scale by changing rules of the game by sacrificing merit. 

'Political move'

The petition alleges that the state government changed the criterion of recruitment against the backdrop of agitations that broke out between December 2019 to February 2020 among the candidates who had applied for the post of lokrakshaks. It got intensified in January-February, with women candidates belonging to SC/ST/OBC questioning manner and method of implementation of 33% for women in the state employment.
Alongside, said the petition, candidates coming from upper caste “threw their hat in the spat of agitation”, with hundreds and thousands started getting together at Gandhinagar with rival claims, which was happening ahead of the visit by US president Donald Trump in Ahmedabad on February 24, for which preparations had begun in January 2020.
Agitation in Gandhinagar
According to petition, if the agitation had continued, attention of the world media would have been diverted from the Trump event, pointing towards unemployed youth, particularly women, seeking state employment by way of agitation. It would have created “a difficult and embarrassing situation” as violation of reservation for backward class and deprivation of state employment to women coming from backward classes would have got media attraction.
It is against backdrop, said the petition, that compelled the state government to take into account the caste dynamics to resolve the matter at the earliest in a manner that satisfied everybody.
“The political balance between upper caste and backward class for party in power became a sutra to be followed even at the cost of violating the judgment and order passed by the Supreme Court and the High Court of Gujarat”, alleged the petition.

Comments

TRENDING

Avoidable Narmada floods: Modi birthday fete caused long wait for release of dam waters

Counterview Desk  Top advocacy group, South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People (SANDRP), has accused the Sardar Sarovar dam operators for once again acting in an "unaccountable" manner, bringing "avoidable floods in downstream Gujarat."  In a detailed analysis, SANDRP has said that the water level at the Golden Bridge in Bharuch approached the highest flood level on September 17, 2023, but these "could have been significantly lower and much less disastrous" both for the upstream and downstream areas of the dam, if the authorities had taken action earlier based on available actionable information.

Biden urged to warn Modi: US can declare India as worst religious freedom offender

By Our Representative  During a Congressional Briefing held on Capitol Hill, Washington DC, Nadine Maenza, former Chair of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), has wondered why the Biden administration should raise issues of mass anti-minority mob violence  -- particularly in Haryana and Manipur -- with Modi. Modi should be told that if such violence continues, the US will be “compelled by law” to designate India as one of the world’s worst offenders of religious freedom, she urged.

From 'Naatu-Naatu' to 'Nipah-Nipah': Dancing to the tune of western pipers?

By Dr Amitav Banerjee, MD*  Some critics have commented that the ecstatic response of most Indians to the Oscar for the racy Indian song, “Naatu-Naatu” from the film, “RRR” reeks of sheer racism, insulting visuals and a colonial hangover. It was perhaps these ingredients that impressed the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, one critic says.

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah*   The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual. 

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Our Representative Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Savarkar 'criminally betrayed' Netaji and his INA by siding with the British rulers

By Shamsul Islam* RSS-BJP rulers of India have been trying to show off as great fans of Netaji. But Indians must know what role ideological parents of today's RSS/BJP played against Netaji and Indian National Army (INA). The Hindu Mahasabha and RSS which always had prominent lawyers on their rolls made no attempt to defend the INA accused at Red Fort trials.

Asset managers hold '2.8 times more equity' in fossil fuel cos than in green investments

By Deepanwita Gita Niyogi*  The world’s largest asset managers are far off track to meet the  2050 net zero commitments , a new study  released by InfluenceMap , a London-based think tank working on climate change and sustainability, says. Released on August 1, the Asset Managers and Climate Change 2023 report by FinanceMap, a work stream of InfluenceMap, finds that the world’s largest asset managers have not improved on their climate performance in the past two years.

Evading primary responsibility, ONGC decides to invest Rs 15,000 crore in sick subsidiary

By NS Venkataraman*  It is reported that Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) will infuse about Rs 15,000 crore in ONGC Petro-additions Ltd (OPaL) as part of a financial restructuring exercise. ONGC currently holds 49.36 per cent stake in (OPaL), which operates a mega petrochemical plant at Dahej in Gujarat. GAIL (India) Ltd has 49.21 per cent interest and Gujarat State Petrochemical Corporation (GSPC) has the remaining 1.43 per cent.

'State-sanctioned terror': Stop drone attack on Adivasis, urge over 80 world academics

Counterview Desk  A joint statement, “Indigenous Peoples’ Un-Freedoms and Our Academic Freedom: A Call for Solidarity”, endorsed by over 80 signatories, including international academics, activists and civil society organizations, as well as diasporic Indian academics and researchers, working with Adivasi (indigenous) communities in India, has made an urgent appeal to prevent future drone bomb attacks by the Indian state on Adivasi villages.

Sales, profits of Indian firms 'deteriorate', yet no significant increase in cost pressures

By Our Representative  The Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad's (IIM-A's) latest Business Inflation Expectations Survey (BIES), a monthly exercise, has said that while cost perceptions data does not indicate significant increase of cost pressures, sales and profits of the Indian firms have deteriorated.