By Mumtaz Alam, IndiaTomorrow.net,

New Delhi, 21 August 2014: When results of Civil Services Examination are announced often in May every year, on an average 30 of variably 1000 successful candidates are from the Muslim community. Generally, India’s largest but most backward religious minority rejoice that it produced 30 or so ‘IAS’ officers that year. But few know about the services actually allotted to those ‘IAS’ officers on the basis of their ranks, caste and vacancies. To investigate the issue, IndiaTomorrow.net dived into the deep sea of government data and came up with some startling facts about allocation of services to Muslim civil servants in last five years.

From 2009 to 2013, around 140 Muslim candidates have cleared Civil Services Examination conducted every year by Union Public Service Commission, but 75% of them could not get posting of Indian Administrative Service (IAS).

IndiaTomorrow.net study reveals that in last five years, 146 Muslims qualified for Civil Services, of which 139 have been allocated services so far. Out of the 139, only 33 (23.74%) got IAS posting, 20 (14.38%) got IPS posting and only 6 (4.31%) got Indian Foreign Service (IFS) posting. The study says that a good number of Muslim candidates i.e. 80 (57.55%) were allotted Central Services of Group A and B categories – 47 got Indian Revenue Service while 33 got different postings in Indian Railways, Accounts, Indian Post etc.

Why is it that only 24% of successful Muslim candidates in last five years have got IAS posting while 34% got IRS? Is it due to choice of candidates or vacancies or some set policy of the government?

Responding to the question, Dr. Syed Zafar Mahmood, former IRS officer who also worked as Officer on Special Duty on the Rajendar Sachar Committee, said it is purely because of candidate’s choice and vacancies, and there is no biased government policy to restrict minority candidates from specific service.

“It is a known fact that the candidates generally give their order of preference of services as this: IAS, IFS, IPS, IRS, Others. Their service allocation depends on their inter se merit dovetailed into the general pattern of preferences…Surely, there is no Government policy of limiting the intake based on the religious faith of the candidates,” Dr. Mahmood told IndiaTomorrow.net. 

He also said that if 24% of Muslim candidates are getting IAS posting it is a point of rejoice, not disappointment, because generally only 16-17% IAS seats are vacant among all civil services vacancies.

“If the data collected by you is fully correct and indubitable, the pleasure level of the successful Muslim candidates must go tremendously up because 24% induction in IAS, as reported by you, is much higher than the all-India figure of percentage (16-17%) of IAS seats in the gross numbers of all the civil services vacancies in recent years. Likewise, 34% successful Muslims being allocated IRS too should be a cause for celebration as that figure also either equals or exceeds the general proportion (29-36%) of IRS seats among the recent annual gross numbers of all the civil services vacancies,” informed Dr. Mahmood who retired as Income Tax Commissioner 10 years ago and his Zakat Foundation of India has since been helping talented Muslim aspirants of civil services. Several ZFI fellows have cracked Civil Services in last five years.

However, Syed Wasif Haider, Assistant Commissioner of Indian Revenue Service currently posted in Kolkata says lack of information on the part of candidates is also a factor. Mr. Haider had secured 460 Rank in Civil Services Exam 2010 whose results were announced in May 2011, and he was allocated Indian Revenue Service (Customs & Central Excise).

When IndiaTomorrow.net asked if IRS (C&CE) was his choice or he got it due to his rank, Mr. Haider said: “I got IRS(C&CE) due to a combination of my rank and choice. As with most (uninformed) candidates, my choice was simply based on outside perception...IAS, IPS, IFS, IRS.”

It is also a fact that just one-fourth of successful Muslim candidates are able to secure position in the top 200 ranks. Out of 139 Muslim candidates in last five years, only 35 featured in the list of top 200 ranks.

The study also reveals that 52% of total number of successful Muslim candidates of civil services are from the General (unreserved) category. While Muslim OBC candidates account for 41% the rest 7% are Muslims from Scheduled Tribes (ST).

The fact that more than half of the successful Muslims are from General category breaks the myth if any that quotas and reservation dampen the spirit of talented Muslim candidates of General category.

“I’ve personally not ever come across any situations on the basis of which it can be concluded that there is a general ‘myth or misunderstanding among Muslim candidates that they won't be selected’ and that’s why they don’t appear. Conversely, serious candidates for civil services, in general, seem to be mature and intelligent enough to recognize that the impediment of reservations that excludes them is as much relevant for non-Muslim candidates too who contest for non-reserved seats,” says Dr. Zafar Mahmood adding that incompetence on part of community leaders is one main reason why not many Muslims appear for this exam.

“The basic reason that many Muslim boys & girls who are eligible and have potential for success in civil services exam do not appear for this exam is their lack of information and non-orientation by competent community elders,” Dr. Mahmood avers. 

NOTE: The story was published first with this heading: Over 75% of Muslim recruits for civil services don’t get IAS postings.