The verification process now requires candidates to disclosed details of their social media accounts used in the past. Experts say this may coerce people to freely expressing themselves online.
Zubair Amin
In 2019, when the Narendra Modi-led BJP government at the Centre diluted Article 370, Kaiser Ahmad (25) was in China, studying medicine. Back home, Kashmir was under a protracted communication blackout, the longest in the history of any democracy. Cut off from his family, an angry and distraught Kaiser would flood his social media with posts criticising the Centre’s move to revoke Kashmir’s special status and the imposition of a communication blackout.
Two years down the line, Kaiser has completed his degree in medicine and is preparing for a government job. However, as the Government of Jammu and Kashmir amended the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services (Verification of Character and Antecedents) Instructions, 1997, he feels anxious about his past social media activity.
Under these new civil service instructions, authorities have made a comprehensive ‘satisfactory report’ from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) necessary for the selection of a candidate. Among the various details mandated to be disclosed at the time of appointment include providing the details of social media accounts used in the past.
“I would definitely feel insecure about furnishing my social media details. We live in a volatile place where everyone is politically active. We share our grief on social media. Now, authorities can mine my past social media activities and scuttle my chances of employment,” said Kaisar, who had recently applied for the job.
Bizarre details sought
Other details sought in the CID report include disclosing whether any family member or close relative is associated with any political party or organisation, or has participated in any political activity, or has had links with a foreign mission or organisation, or any prescribed/ prohibited/ banned organisation such as the Jamaat-e-Islam and even details of the in-laws.
In the updated format, the job seeker would also need to provide details of mobile numbers used during the past five years, accounts of email or web-based portal accounts used, registration numbers of vehicles owned/used, account numbers of bank, post office account numbers and passport number.
“The CID shall conduct verification of character and antecedents of the selectees and forward the same to the requisitioning authority within one month from the date of receipt of the list of selectees. In case the verification process in respect of some candidates requires more time, the CID may seek another one month in respect of such candidates only while forwarding the completed cases,” the order issued by the General Administration Department read.
The order further states, “In case of receipt of an adverse report and on confirmation thereof by the State/Divisional/District Level Screening Committee, as the case may be, the appointment shall automatically stand cancelled without any notice.”
Aim of the amendments
J&K has about 450,000 people employed in various government departments. The region lacks a robust corporate sector, thus making the government the biggest employer. As the majority of the educated youth in the Valley look for government jobs, these amendments have made aspirants anxious as they feel their past could be weighed in to cancel their selection at the time of appointment.
Tanveer Ahmad* (22) feels this order has eliminated him from competing for any government job. In 2014, Ahmad was arrested under Section 7/25 of the Arms Act, which deals with acquiring of, or possessing, carrying any prohibited arms or prohibited ammunition.
At the time of arrest, Ahmad was a juvenile. After eight months of custody in a juvenile jail, Ahmad started a fresh life. Today, he is enrolled in the University of Kashmir, pursuing a master’s programme in Islamic Studies. But now, he has no hopes of securing a government job in future, as he feels his record would be cited to cancel his candidature for any government job.
“Like me, hundreds of students who have enrolled in colleges and universities have been arrested on fake charges. With these new civil service rules coming into effect, our chances of acquiring a government job are minimal,” Ahmad said.
Sheikh Showkat Hussain, who formerly headed the department of law at the Central University of Kashmir, said while the verification process was mandated earlier too, the updated format is in line with the “present preoccupations” of people.
“Restrictions like these were prevalent throughout India and Kashmir earlier as well. In the late 1960s, the then government in Kashmir issued an order according to which people associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh and Islamic Study Circle were barred from government jobs. Now they have updated the manual in line with the evolving realities,” Sheikh said.
Showkat feels the aim of such amendments is to deter people from associating with the organisations mentioned in the order.
“What they intend to do is to harass people, so they remain aloof from these organisations. This is a sort of deterrence,” he said.
He explains this will choke the space further for those who remain within Kashmiri society “because they will be scared of associating with different groups, lest it may impede their chances of getting employment.”
Violates constitutional provisions
Constitutional experts in the Valley believe that the amended instructions violate multiple provisions of the constitution of India. Shafqat Nazir, advocate at the J&K high court explains that the new order violates Articles 14, 16, 19 and 21 of the constitution.
“In any other part of the country, such an arbitrary process is not followed during the recruitment process. This action of treating job aspirants of Jammu and Kashmir not at par with the aspirants from other states violates Article 14 of the constitution,” Shafqat said.
He further explained that these instructions do not provide equal opportunities in the right to employment and hence violate Article 16 of the constitution.
“This order will effectively categorise job aspirants. Those who have been vocal on social media or have been associated with any political activity which was permissible earlier but is banned now will face the brunt of these amended instructions. However a socially and politically disconnected candidate will be advantaged,” he added.
Shafqat said besides violating freedom of speech and expression guaranteed under Article 19, these rules also breach the privacy of the candidate implicit in Article 21 of the constitution.
“Making it mandatory to provide social media details and details of association with political organisations will put fear in the mind of the aspirant, who would definitely self-censor. In this way, these rules take away aspirants’ right to speak and express. This also amounts to the breach of privacy of a candidate,” he added.
‘Orwellian move to dispossess thoughts’
Rifling through his exam notes at his home in Central Kashmir’s Charar i Sharief town, Mohsin Hussain (26), said he would think a hundred times before posting anything on his social media accounts. He said the new service rules are intended to silence the vocal and articulate youth of the Valley.
“It is the dispossession of our thoughts. We do not have the right to think now. They want to curb our sentiment completely by changing our thought process. This will affect me psychologically,” he said.
Mohsin said the rules make an opinionated government job seeker an oxymoron of our time.
“I am a government job aspirant and with this order, I should not have any opinion. I have to be very sterile politically,” he told The Wire.
Gowhar Geelani, author and political analyst, told The Wire that the entire process is a form of punishment. He says it is intimidating for a lot of people to apply for a government job in Kashmir.
“It is off-putting on multiple counts. Human beings are thinking beings and they have political views too. How can their personal viewpoint be held against them and their professional skill set?” Geelani asked.
Geelani termed these amendments as Orwellian in nature and, comparing them to thought policing. “Such rules will create roadblocks. It will make job-seeking difficult,” he added.
