NEW DELHI : After a U-turn of sorts over the lateral entry appointments in the higher bureaucracy, the BJP-led NDA government is likely to call the allies’ meeting to discuss the next move on the same theme after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s return from his foreign trip.

The meeting will take up the controversy over the lack of reservation in the lateral entry process. Sources hint that the fresh move incorporating a proportional reservation facility even in the contractual appointment of experts in bureaucracy will be ensured in the fresh advertisement on the matter.

 Speaking to this newspaper, a senior government source indicated that the government was prepared to address the controversy and may consider a fresh approach.

 “Since elections are around the corner in many states and Opposition parties have made it an issue, the government may leave nothing to chance to ensure that reservations are applied in the appointment of specialists on a contractual basis through lateral entry,” said a senior BJP leader.

He said the proposed changes would aim to balance the need for skilled individuals in bureaucracy with the principles of equitable representation.

The buzz is that the Centre may issue a fresh notification this month or the first week of September. “It is possible that a fresh move may come on September 17, the PM’s birthday, as a gift to the deserving professionals belonging to the SC/ST and OBC communities,” said a senior BJP functionary.

Soon after the government withdrew the August 17 advertisement, BJP IT chief and senior leader Amit Malviya, in a post on X, said that the lateral entry notification has only been withdrawn, not cancelled.

In a jibe at Opposition, Malviya said, “A more specific notification is likely to follow, with clear elucidation of guidelines and defined provisions of social justice, so that usual suspects cannot vitiate the environment.”

Malviya said the Modi government wanted to ensure that lateral entries through UPSC are done in a transparent and institutionalised manner that are consistent with the principles of social justice and reservation. “The Modi government has been in the forefront of delivering social justice. The government is revitalising the circular,” he said.

He assailed the Congress for preferring ‘adhocism’ and ‘opaqueness.’ The lateral entries during the Congress era were not consistent with the principles of social justice, and therefore, sidelined SC/STs and OBCs, he alleged.

He pointed at high-profile lateral entrants such as Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Nandan Nilekarni and others who were also selected without a proper process. Accusing the Congress of being systematically biased against SC/ST and OBC candidates by designing many government-aided institutions, Malviya said the Modi government institutionalised lateral entries through UPSC by removing the opaqueness and putting an end to ad-hoc entries into the system.

The buzz is that the Centre may issue a fresh notification on the lateral entry appointments in August or the first week of September. “It is possible that a fresh move may come on September 17, the Prime Minister’s birthday, as a gift to the deserving professionals belonging to the SC/ST and OBC communities,” said a senior BJP functionary.