DIMAPUR — A coalition of four state service
employee associations has levelled a serious accusation against Nagaland
government, alleging an attempt to facilitate the entry of backdoor-appointed
individuals into the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) cadre.
The Confederation of All Nagaland State Service Employees’
Association (CANSSEA), Federation of Nagaland State Engineering Service
Association (FONSESA), Nagaland Secretariat Services Association (NSSA), and
Nagaland Finance & Accounts Services Association (NF&ASA) issued a
joint press release on Monday expressing grave concern over said alleged
attempt.
The joint statement, issued through the media cell of Core-Committee
for Non-SCS IAS Induction, explained that the concern arises from a government
circular inviting applications from eligible officers for induction into one
vacant IAS post from non-State Civil Services (non-SCS).
“The circular, which provided a 15-day application window,
saw 10 applicants submit their names by the deadline. However, alarmingly, the
circular was revoked just one day after the submission deadline, and the state
government subsequently decided to amend the eligibility criteria—most notably
removing the fourth criterion that originally upheld merit-based consideration.
“This decision was taken under the pretext of following the
IAS (Recruitment) Rules, 1954, and IAS (Appointment by Selection) Regulations,
1997, a move the associations describe as a strategic manipulation to
accommodate backdoor appointees—officers who entered service without going
through the Nagaland Public Service Commission (NPSC),” the statement read.
According to the associations, this alleged action
undermines transparency and fairness “in an era where meritocracy should be the
cornerstone of governance.”
While the IAS Regulations provide a framework, they never
intended to facilitate unethical appointments, they maintained.
“In 2018, the Nagaland Civil Service Association (NCSA) had
submitted a representation that led to circulars mandating IAS induction only
from those appointed via the NPSC, a move seen as a step toward transparency
and fairness.
“Instead of reinforcing these standards, the recent
government’s decision has reversed them. The associations allege that this
reversal was tailor-made to benefit a select few, setting a dangerous precedent
whereby individuals with questionable modes of entry into service could end up
in senior policymaking roles,” the statement read.
If entry into the IAS can be manipulated, then no aspect of
the system is safe from nepotism, it added.
“The office of the CANSSEA, FONSESA, NSSA, and NF&ASA
has submitted numerous representations to the state government but has received
only a generic reply stating that the process will proceed under the IAS
(Recruitment) Rules, 1954, and IAS (Appointment by Selection) Regulations,
1997, ignoring the associations’ calls for stricter eligibility norms and
merit-based selections,” it stated.
Demanding an “immediate correction of this misstep”, the
associations urged the government to reinstate strict merit-based eligibility
criteria and cancel all actions taken to favour non-meritorious entrants.
“Failing which, they reserve the right to pursue appropriate democratic means
of protest and legal recourse,” it added.
