Chandigarh: Leaders of the Congress and the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) on Tuesday strongly criticized the Nayab Saini-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government and the Haryana Public Service Commission (HPSC) for allegedly disregarding talented and educated youth from Haryana in recruitment drives. Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC) president Rao Narender Singh and Rajya Sabha MP Randeep Singh Surjewala accused the government of systematically denying employment opportunities to the state's youth by favoring candidates from outside Haryana.
Allegations of Sidelining Local Youth
Targeting the Saini-led BJP government, Surjewala alleged that local youth are being sidelined for officer-level positions while outsiders are appointed to key administrative posts. He said, "The BJP government's recruitment policy has created a perception among young people that ‘peons are from Haryana, but officers are from outside the state.'" He further alleged that educated youth in Haryana are facing rising unemployment and are even being forced to seek labor work abroad due to the lack of fair opportunities in state recruitment.
Congress Leaders' Statements
Rao Narender Singh echoed these sentiments, stating that despite the BJP's repeated claims of "no recommendation, no bribery" in government jobs, recruitment through the HPSC and the Haryana Staff Selection Commission (HSSC) has disproportionately benefited candidates from other states over the past 11 years. Citing the recruitment of assistant professors in Hindi as an example, Surjewala pointed out that out of 139 advertised posts, only 60 candidates were selected after a prolonged process, and 41 of them were allegedly from outside Haryana. He also questioned the recruitment process for assistant professors in psychology, where several vacancies reportedly remained unfilled despite available applicants.
INLD's Criticism
Meanwhile, INLD supremo and former MLA Abhay Singh Chautala also flayed the Saini-led government over the issue. Chautala noted that even during recruitments for engineering, judicial, medical, and technical education positions, the majority of successful candidates were from outside Haryana. He demanded immediate corrective measures to ensure that local youth get their due share in government jobs.
