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Mamata Banerjee vowed to back the sacked teachers in West Bengal and said that her government does not accept the Supreme Court’s ruling on the matter.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee (PTI Image)
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday met the teachers who lost their jobs following the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the Calcutta High Court’s order annuling the appointment of over 25,000 teaching and non-teaching staff in state-run schools.
Declaring that she does not accept the verdict of the top court, she also vowed to back the teachers who were sacked from their jobs after the Supreme Court’s order.
The top court’s ruling on April 3 was in connection with the Calcutta High Court’s order cancelling of the appointments by the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) in 2016 over an alleged school jobs-for-cash scam. The SC had observed that the appointments were vitiated by fraud.
Mamata On Supreme Court’s Verdict
Addressing a section of impacted teachers at the Netaji Indoor Stadium in Kolkata, Mamata said that she might be jailed for her stance and affirmed that her government stands by their side.
“Do not think that we have accepted this [decision]. Our heart is also aching because of your grief. We are all humans, and our hearts are not made of stone. It is because of this, they might put me in jail for saying this, but I don’t care. When someone is in trouble, we don’t need to see who is red, white, yellow, or green. We are supposed to stand by their side. We cannot deny the responsibility to restore their dignity and respect that they deserve,” she said.
The Chief Minister announced that her government has “separate plans” to ensure eligible candidates do not become unemployed or have any break in jobs.
Mamata dubbed the sacking of teachers a “conspiracy” to destroy the state’s education system.
“There is a conspiracy going on to destroy the education system. Teachers of classes 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th are the gateways to higher education…Many (teachers) are gold medalists; they have achieved great results in their lives, and you are calling them thieves. You are calling them incompetent; who gave you this right? Who is playing this game…” she said.
BJP Stages Protest Against Mamata
West Bengal Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari staged a protest along with the BJP MLAs against the Mamata government, demanding her resignation over the Supreme Court’s order.
“Mamata Banerjee should go to jail. She is the main beneficiary. Her nephew took a bribe of Rs 700 crore,” Adhikari alleged.
The Bengal jobs-for-cash scam pertains to the illegal hiring of teachers and staff in 2016. Over 23 lakh people took exams for 25,000 posts, but later, it was alleged that many were wrongly selected through unfair means. The Calcutta High Court cancelled those appointments, ordered a recheck of all answer sheets, asked the hired people to return their salaries, and directed a CBI probe.
The Supreme Court upheld the order; however, it said that those who had already been appointed need not hand over the salary they have received so far.
