Cong MP seeks PM Modi’s intervention to address grievances of OBC candidates selected for Civil Services

Chennai, Sep 22 Congress MP from Tamil Nadu’s Virudhunagar Lok Sabha constituency, Manickam Tagore, on Sunday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking his urgent intervention to address grievances of OBC candidates selected for Civil Services.

Taking to microblogging site X, Manickam Tagore said, “Meritorious OBC candidates who cleared #UPSC are being unjustly blocked from joining IAS, IPS due to @DoPTGoI rejection of state-issued BC certificates.”

He urged the Prime Minister’s Office to ensure fairness and justice by promptly addressing this critical issue and also tagged the All India OBC Students Association (AIOBCSA) in the post.

In the letter addressed to the Prime Minister, the Congress MP said that the meritorious OBC students who have cleared the UPSC examination were facing significant obstacles related to the verification of their ONC Non-Creamy Layer (NCL) status which was preventing them from joining the service.

The Lok Sabha MP further said, “The core of the problem revolves around the rejection of State Government-issued equivalence certificates that confirm the Class I/IV status of the candidates' parents.”

He said that even though the 1993 Office Memorandum (OM) issued by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) provides guidelines for OBC NCL classification, there is no explicit clause that mandates the rejection of these State-issued certificates.

Manickam Tagore in the letter said, “In practice, however, these certificates are often dismissed by authorities, leading to the unjust disqualification of many qualified OBC candidates.”

He also said that the interpretation of the Model Form issued through OM No. 36012/22/93 dated November 15, 1993, which excludes family income from salaries and agricultural land, has been inconsistent.

He said that this inconsistency was disproportionately affecting candidates whose parents were employed in Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs), Public Sector Banks (PSBs), and other public sector institutions.

Manickam Tagore said, “The prevailing interpretation seems to favour those employed in Central and State Government roles, thereby disadvantaging candidates from other sectors.”

The Congress leader said that the DoPT in collaboration with the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MSJE), should establish a clear and inclusive policy regarding the acceptance of State Government-issued equivalence certificates for candidates whose parents hold Class III/IV posts in Central/State Government, Govt. Aided, public sector organisations.

The MP further said that a consistent and fair interpretation of the income criteria for OBC NCL status should be enforced and added that this would ensure that candidates whose parents work in PSUs, PSBs, and other public sector bodies are treated equitably.

Manickam Tagore, in the letter to the Prime Minister also said that the process for service allocation and OBC status verification must be made transparent.

He said that Records of OBC candidates' service verifications should be accessible for scrutiny to promote fairness and accountability.

The Congress MP said that the DoPT accepted State-issued equivalence certificates for rank holders 621 and 723 of CSE 2015, which demonstrates an acceptance of such certificates.

Manickam Tagore said that to ensure fairness for pending cases, especially for OBC candidates, DoPT must apply the same criteria consistently.

He said that the current situation has caused undue distress to OBC candidates who have earned their positions through merit but are being unjustly denied due to procedural ambiguities.

“I trust that you will be taking the appropriate measures to rectify these issues and ensure justice for these deserving candidates,” the Congress leader concluded.

Source: IANS