The Opposition parties have slammed Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for expressing her sympathy for the deposed school teachers who were earlier adjudged “tainted” by the Supreme Court.
“The Chief Minister seems to be more concerned about the “tainted” teachers who had secured their jobs through corrupt means does this not smell a rat when the deserving teachers who too lost their jobs are agitating in the streets the Chief Minister is showing her sympathy for the “tainted” teachers who obtained their jobs through corrupt means,” said Bengal BJP chief Samik Bhattacharya.
The Court in an order passed earlier this year cancelled an entire recruitment panel of 1916 that led to the dismissal of about 25,600 school teachers on account of non-transparency in recruitment process. The Court also directed the State School Service Commission to hold a fresh recruitment examination and complete the appointment procedure by December 31 of this year.
The new recruitment examination will be conducted on September 7 and 14. The Court has ruled the “tainted” teachers ineligible to appear in the exams.
The Chief Minister had earlier said that she was “concerned about the teachers who have lost their jobs after being ruled tainted,” adding she would try to find out ways of accommodating them in Class III jobs.
The Chief Minister in an award giving programme earlier said that she was looking for alternative jobs for the teachers who had been ruled tainted. “After working for so many years, many of them have been termed ‘tainted and ineligible’. I am looking into this matter. They may not work as teachers according to the court’s order, but I am trying to ascertain whether they can work as Group C or D staff of course legally,” she said.
Following the Court order the SSC last week released the names of 1806 “tainted” teachers. Incidentally a large number such tainted teachers in the list published by the SSC turned out to be the close relatives of TMC leaders including ministers and MLAs.
“Her sympathy for the tainted and the lathi-charge that her police resorted to on the eligible and agitating teachers is a proof of the corrupt nature of her Government the Court has rightly called it an institutionalised corruption,” said a CPI(M) leader.
Meanwhile, Bengal Opposition Leader Suvendu Adhikari on Friday alleged that some TMC people were leaking questions.
“The TMC is selling questions for `50,000 I have reports that they are selling questions for the coming two examinations,” he said. The SSC however rejected the charges saying the “question papers are absolutely safe and there is no question of any leak.”