Get Together and Seminar on Reservation

The Central Secretariat SC/ST Employees Welfare Association (Regd.) organised a get together and the Seminar on Reservation in Promotions on 29th April, 2016 at Speaker Hall, Constitution Club,New Delhi. Shri Faggan Singh Kulaste, Chairman, Parliamentary Committee for Welfare of SCs and STs, chief guest on the occasion addressed the gathering. He exhorted all the stakeholders in the matter of reservation in promotions to sit together and suggest a lasting solution to never ending litigations on this subject, particularly after a spate of judicial pronouncements pursuant to the Supreme Court judgment in M. Nagaraj case (2006). He assured his unstinted support to the cause. Earlier, Dr. K.S. Chauhan, Senior Advocate in Supreme Court informed the audience that when the deveoped countries, like USA, UK, South Africa etc. have the provisions of reservation in promotions in service as well as in all types of private contracts on the basis of law laid down through judicial interventions and not on the basis of any such provisions in their respective constitutions, why it is in India that here well defined constitutional provisions for reservation are challenged in courts every now and then. He said that apart from reservation for black population, the women in USA also enjoy the benefit of reservation as a part of Government's policy for affirmative action for less privileged sections of society. Mr. Rohtas Bhankhar, President of Central Secretariat SC/ST Employees Welfare Association, advised all the employees to unite fight together for the common cause of saving the interests of the downtrodden sections of society. Mr. M.S. Kalania Deputy Secretary called upon all the educated and service class persons of Dalit Adivasi communities to join hands and pay back to their society in the form their contribution in educational and economic upliftment of poor people living in destitution. The issues of discrimination and selective implementation of rule to harm the promotional prospects of SC/ST Employees in Central Secretariat by DOPT, the nodal Department for service and reservation related matters, were also highlighted. It was pointed out to the audience that how mischievously the DOPT amended rules for promotion from the post of SSA to ASO by increasing minimum qualifying service from 8 years to 10 years without keeping the mandatory saving clause for non application of the revised rule to such employees who were eligible for promotion under the pre-revised rule at the time of said revision. In this way Department obstructed the promotion of hundreds of SC/ST Employees by deliberately keeping their earmarked posts vacant. On the other hand, the DOPT refused to revise the minimum qualifying service for promotion from Section Officer grade to Under Secretary grade from existing 8 years to 6 years as per revised guidelines because such an amendment was going to the benefit of SC/ST Section officers. Resultantly, there has been minimal representation of SC/ST officers in the Under Secretary Grade Select Lists for the years 2009, 2010, 2013 and 2014. A strong pitch was raised to stop Ad-Hoc Appointments in Central Secretariat. The provision of making ad-hoc appointments is resorted to in rare and special circumstances. In normal course all appointments are to be made on regular basis in consultation with UPSC, wherever required under the rules. But the DOPT has not only adopted the ad-hoc appointments as a regular feature in its cadre management but it has also been making blatant misuse of Ad-hoc appointments to detriment of SC/ST officers. Our officers have to retire without promotion because of this ad-hoc policy of the Government. For example, the DOPT has not been able issue a regular Select List for Deputy Secretary grade since 2011. All promotions in this grade are being made on ad-hoc basis. Delay in issuing regular select list will cause SC/ST Deputy Secretaries to retire with promotion in Director grade. Secondly, even while making ad-hoc appointments, no attention is paid to the DOPT OM no. 36012/27/2000-Estt.(Res.), dated 15/3/2002. As per this O.M. the vacancies identified as falling under SC/ST share and are proposed to be filled up ad-hoc basis, should be filled up in the same manner as in the case of filling up on regular basis. The backlog of SC/ST vacancies is to be treated as a group distinct from the current vacancies in terms of DOPT OM no. 36012/5/97-Estt.(RR) Vol.II, dated 20/7/2000. Therefore, it was appealed to the DOPT to stop making ad-hoc promotion as a rule. They should ensure timely release the regular Select Lists for all grades as per promotion guidelines. The speakers also raised the issue of complete implementation of Supreme Court Order in Rohtas Bhankhar case and Review of Results of SO Gr./ Steno. Gr. B LDCE, 1997-1999. The Constitution Bench of Hon’ble Supreme Court, in its judgment dated 15.7.2014 in the Rohtas Bhankhar case (Civil Appeal No.6046-47 /2004) has declared the DOPT’s OM No. 36012/23/96-Estt.(Res),  dated  22.7.1997 as illegal and quashed. However, the Government still considers the said O.M. dated 22.7.1997 as legal for all SC/ST employees except those who appeared in Section Officers /Stenographers (Grade B / Grade-I) LDCE, 1996. Such a view of the DOPT is gross violation of the “Law of Land” declared by Hon’ble Supreme Court in Rohtas Bhankhar case.   The Government still considers the illegal O.M. dated 22.7.1997 as legal for all SC/ST employees except those who appeared in Section Officers /Stenographers (Grade B / Grade-I) LDCE, 1996. Such a view of the DOPT is gross violation of the “Law of Land” declared by Hon’ble Supreme Court in Rohtas Bhankhar case.   As a matter of fact, with the quashing of DOPT’s O.M. dated 22.7.1997 by the Supreme Court in Rohtas Bhankhar case, all the Limited Departmental Competitive Exams held between 1996 and 2000 should be reviewed by allowing concessions in respect of SC/ST category employees that were withdrawn under the said illegal O.M. The Department should also take action simultaneously for inclusion of fresh candidates against vacancies being created with the shifting of SC/ST candidates to new Select Lists of 1996, 1997, 1998 and 1999 after implementation of Supreme Court judgement. For example, the DOPT is yet to take any action to fill up the vacancies caused by movement 41 Section Officers from SO grade select lists 2000 - 2003 to the SO grade select list1996. The Government has implemented the Supreme Court, in its judgment dated 15.7.2014 in the Rohtas Bhankhar only in respect of Section Officers/  Stenographers (Grade B / Grade-I) Ltd. Departmental Competitive Examination, 1996.The officers included in SO Select List, 1996 are still waiting for their empanelment in the revised Select Lists for US grade on the basis of their revised seniority. —