PTI, NEW DELHI, APRIL 16, 2025 : A group of teachers and non-teaching staff from West Bengal, who lost their jobs following a Supreme Court verdict in a case on irregularities in their recruitment process, staged a protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on Wednesday, demanding to be reinstated.
The teachers, who have been agitating in West Bengal, staged the protest here under the banner of “Jogyo Shikkok Shikkhika Adhikar Manch“, a platform advocating for the reinstatement of those who had cleared the exam on merit. The protesting teachers and non-teaching staff said the SSC failed in distinguishing between fraudulent and legitimate candidates, leading to a blanket cancellation of appointments. They added that they have urged the state government and the commission to devise a mechanism to reinstate the deserving candidates.
Chinmoy Mondal, one of the teachers appointed in 2019 following the examination held in 2016 that is under the scanner, said they have come to Delhi to make an appeal to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding their situation.
“We want to tell the people of the country how we are suffering. The education system is collapsing in our state, and our rights are not being protected,” Mondal told news agency PTI.
“The innocent should not be punished, else future generations will shy away from becoming teachers, thinking that it is a tainted profession,” he said. Mondal added that they are fighting not just for their jobs, but for their dignity.
Rahman, who was also appointed as a teacher, said they should not be punished for institutional fraud. “The CBI has said there are around 6,000 teachers who are unqualified. The CBI should be allowed to investigate the case. Those who are corrupt will not agree to a CBI probe, but we want the investigation to be done so that the truth is revealed,” he said.
Pralay Kumar Jamadar, who hails from Midnapore and was appointed as non-teaching staff, said he was posted in a school in Purulia, near the Jharkhand-West Bengal border, where he was living with his family in a rented accommodation. His family is still there, Jamadar said, adding that he continues to pay a monthly rent of Rs 5,000 even though he has lost his job.
“Our families are facing the brunt. People talk behind our backs and accuse us of being thieves… Our children have to put up with taunts when they go to school,” he told news agency PTI.
Bikram Polley, who is from Howrah and was posted in West Midnapore, claimed that those who cleared the exam on merit were given postings far from their homes, while those who indulged in malpractices were given postings in their home districts.
“I was posted in a school 250 km away from my home and I moved there for the job. If we are sacked, it will be injustice,” he said.
Partho Das, who was also appointed as non-teaching staff, said those who cleared the exam on merit accept a CBI probe, while claiming that segregation is possible between those who cleared the exam on merit and those who did not. Another protester, Sujoy Sardar, said the entire country should support them.
“The Prime Minister, the President, everyone should take note of it. Those innocent should get relief,” he said.
Meanwhile, CPI(ML) Liberation leader Sucheta De questioned the Supreme Court verdict in the matter. (
