Punjab passes bill relaxing criteria for appointing SC law officers

The Punjab assembly on Monday passed the Punjab Law Officers (Engagement) Amendment Bill, 2025, for relaxation in the minimal annual professional income criteria for engagement of Scheduled Caste candidates as law officers in the office of advocate general, Punjab. The bill, replacing an ordinance, was presented by finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema, who stated that this amendment will provide adequate representation to Scheduled Caste candidates in the AG’s office. He said that the state cabinet had reserved 58 posts in the AG’s office for Scheduled Caste candidates, but several seats remained vacant due to the income limit criteria set by the 2017 law. The amendment aims to reduce the income limit. Cabinet minister Mohinder Bhagat and MLAs Budh Ram, Nachhatar Pal and Vikramjit Chaudhary thanked Cheema. Chaudhary termed the decision to reserve seats for lawyers from the Scheduled Caste community an important and positive step toward ensuring representation and opportunity for marginalised professionals in the legal domain. He also urged the government to revise the income eligibility criteria for the Shagun Scheme. The current threshold of ₹1.8 lakh per annum per family was no longer adequate and excluded many poor SC families from benefiting under this social welfare scheme, he said.