Bengal school job case: Terminated teachers express discontent over CM’s assurances

Kolkata, April 7: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, on Monday, expressed doubts about some “game” behind the recent verdict of the Supreme Court ordering the cancellation of all the 25,753 teaching and non-teaching jobs in state-run schools.
The Supreme Court on April 3 upheld a Calcutta High Court’s decision to terminate the appointments of the teaching and non-teaching jobs in state-run schools by the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) in 2016 in connection with the jobs-for-cash scam.
“Was there some sort of game behind the verdict? Who had played the game from behind?” the Chief Minister questioned while addressing a gathering of job losers at Netaji Indoor Stadium in central Kolkata on Monday afternoon.
According to her, the Supreme Court has yet to clarify who are the “genuine” and who are the “tainted” candidates.
“I would like to request the Supreme Court to clarify this point. For the sake of humanity, we would like to request the apex court to provide the state government with the two lists of ‘genuine’ and ‘tainted’ candidates,” the Chief Minister said.
She also said that the state government will seek clarifications from the apex court on what is needed to be done with the existing teachers till the time the fresh recruitment process starts through examinations.
“First, let me settle the issue of the ‘genuine’ candidates. After that we will examine the documents and evidence that are against the so-called ‘tainted’ candidates,” the Chief Minister said.
She asked the ‘genuine’ teachers to continue giving the voluntary service.
“Have you received termination letters as yet? Continue with your service. Anyone can provide voluntary service,” she said.
She also announced a panel of top lawyers in the country who will be pursuing the matter at the next level on behalf of the state government.
“It is the duty of the state government to protect the jobs of those who were in service. We will do whatever is required as per the legal provisions,” the Chief Minister said.
She targeted the CPI(M) Rajya Sabha member and senior advocate of Calcutta High Court Bikas Ranjan Bhattacharya, who had been involved in the prolonged legal process, and described him as the key man responsible for the current situation where the jobs of so many persons have become uncertain.
“Why did Bikas Bhattacharya initiate the legal process by filing a case? A dirty game has started since 2022,” the Chief Minister said.
Meanwhile, several “eligible” teachers, whose jobs were annulled by the recent Supreme Court order, expressed dissatisfaction with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s assurances during the meeting at Netaji Indoor Stadium here on Monday and claimed that no concrete guarantees were provided regarding reinstatement of their jobs.
Showing printouts of the Optical Mark Recognition (OMR) sheets from the 2016 SSC recruitment exam, Suman Biswas, a teacher at Nakasipara High School in Nadia district, told PTI, “The CM did not utter a single word about the SSC taking into account the OMR sheets of ‘untainted candidates’ and submitting the same to the apex court.” Allegations had surfaced during the probe that ‘tainted’ candidates secured jobs by tampering with their OMR sheets, which compromised the chances of deserving candidates.
“What she said about giving voluntary service in schools and not sending any termination letters to the candidates makes little sense. The Supreme Court had repeatedly asked the CBI and SSC to furnish details. Her bluff and tall words have been exposed,” Biswas, who used to commute from his Hooghly residence before his job was terminated, said.
“Either you ensure we get back our jobs, or we will hit the streets and even face bullets,” added the teacher, who had been working for over eight years. Sanchita Majumdar and Payel Sarkar, teachers from Bulbulchandi High School in Malda, said the CM advised them to “work voluntarily to ensure there is no break” in their service period.” However, they were not given any concrete assurances about the security of their jobs. (Agencies)