MERIT SHOULD BE THE SOLE GUIDING FACTOR 

After 75 years of Independence, it is high time that the golden rule has to be to aim to get the best qualified person for every position – irrespective of sex, caste, creed or religion. Only this could pave the way for our great nation to be progressive and truly Independent.

In this competitive world it is about time to do away with the skewed policy of reservations for jobs and in electoral politics as well. Admissions to all professional colleges must also be strictly on merit.

The Constitution of India provides for the Fundamental Right to Equality, without discrimination on the grounds of sex, caste, creed or religion. The very concept of reservations is all about petty vote bank politics. Merit is key to genuine and rapid success. James Barksdale, an American Business CEO advised that ‘Where we compete on merit we always do very well’.   

It is appalling at how plagued we have become by a sheer sense of illogicality.  The government must financially help the economically challenged in pursuit of further education so that they can compete with the mainstream on a level playing field. Very ironically, while on one hand the law provides for equality, on the other hand there is a policy of reservation, which by its very genesis is a favour. Equality doesn’t brook favours. A contradiction in terms!

The late Nelson Mandela famously said, ‘My respect for human beings is based not on the colour of a man’s skin nor authority he may wield, but purely on merit’. 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.