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In a first, Punjab introduces reservation for law officers
Chief minister Bhagwant Mann said 58 new posts of law officers being created in the advocate general’s office will be reserved for SCs
Chandigarh: The Punjab government on Sunday announced reservation for the Scheduled Caste (SC) in posts of law officers recruited by the state government.
Chief minister Bhagwant Mann said 58 new posts of law officers being created in the advocate general’s office will be reserved for SCs. These posts will be filled up in the coming days, he said. “When I took oath as the chief minister, I asked my officers whether there was any provision of reservation in the appointment of law officers in the Advocate General’s office and they replied in the negative. When I asked them whether we can we make such a provision, they said the government can take such a decision,” Mann said in a video message.
These additional 58 posts being created in the AG’s office will be reserved for SCs, he said, adding the decision was taken after consulting legal experts.
Mann said Punjab will be the first state in the country to have such a provision for lawyers who are from the SC community.
The announcement comes a day after Mann, during a meeting with members of the Valmiki community on the issue of appointment of law officers, said no other state has reservation in these posts but the Punjab government will soon give “good news”.
In his video message, Mann said he had always been a votary of giving equal opportunities to the youth of SC community to excel in every field. He emphasised that the state government is making all out efforts to provide equal opportunities of progress and prosperity for the community. The CM claimed that unlike previous governments, which had only made lip service for welfare of community, the Aam Aadmi Party government has taken tangible steps in this regard.
According to an official statement, the advertisement in this regard was issued by the department of home affairs on Saturday in which applications have been called from eligible SC advocates/candidates for engagement as law officers in the office of advocate general, Punjab, at Chandigarh and Legal Cell, New Delhi. The eligible candidates can apply for post by September 13.
A historic decision: Cheema
Punjab finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema described the AAP government’s decision to reserve 58 posts of law officers in the Punjab government as “historic”.
Addressing a press conference, Cheema said there is no reservation for SC community in posts of law officers in any high court of the country. He dared the BJP and Congress to introduce similar reservation in their respective ruling states across the country. “Unlike the previous governments who only used the SC community for vote bank politics, the AAP is doing something concrete to uplift them,” he said. Cheema said that the AAP had earlier also inducted five ministers from the SC Community, giving them crucial departments including finance and PWD.
