Supreme Court to Decide on Legality of Outsourcing Government Jobs via GeM

The Supreme Court has accepted a case questioning whether government jobs can be outsourced through the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) portal. 

The petition, filed by the Dakshin Railway Employees Union, challenges the removal of 152 sanitary workers by Southern Railway, who were replaced with outsourced staff lacking the required qualifications, age criteria, and reservation compliance.

The union argues that outsourcing via GeM violates Articles 14, 16, 309, 320(3), and 335 of the Constitution.

The Court has issued a notice to the Union government and directed Railways to retain the workers while the case is pending, raising concerns over bypassing recruitment rules.