The govt uses court rulings to suppress teachers when it suits the treasury, while ignoring judicial decisions that would provide them financial relief
By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, April 25: The war of words over Meghalaya’s education crisis escalated on Saturday as the VPP accused Education Minister Rakkam A Sangma of “legal cherry-picking”—alleging the government strictly enforces court orders that burden teachers while ignoring those that mandate higher pay.
VPP leader Batskhem Myrboh described as “surprising and laughable” the minister’s suggestion that party president Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit remove his sunglasses to better read the Supreme Court decision on the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET).
Myrboh questioned why the minister insists on strict compliance with the TET directive while failing to implement the Supreme Court-backed decision to pay allowances to college teachers entitled to the UGC scale, a matter decided in 2022. He alleged the government uses court rulings to suppress teachers when it suits the treasury, while ignoring judicial decisions that would provide them financial relief.
The exchange follows the minister’s sharp reaction to Basaiawmoit’s claim that the state was “harassing” local teachers by requiring them to clear the Meghalaya Teacher Eligibility Test (MTET). The minister defended the requirement as a mandate under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, which was upheld by the Supreme Court on September 1, 2023.
Dismissing the VPP’s allegations, the minister previously remarked that Basaiawmoit views state issues through “black glasses,” which he claimed prevents the VPP chief from acknowledging the legal realities of the education sector.
The VPP has cautioned the government against misleading the public, asserting that the selective application of the law has created a moral and financial crisis for the state’s teaching community.
