No ‘eligible’ person to lose job; Plan A, Plan B ready: Mamata
Times of India | 8 April 2025
Kolkata: Not a single "eligible" teacher or non-teaching staff member would lose their job, Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee said on Monday at a meeting with thousands rendered jobless after last week's SC decision on SSC appointments. Their jobs would be regularised in two months, she said, adding she had both "Plan A" and "Plan B" ready.
"Let Supreme Court clarify and give us the list of eligible (untainted) and ineligible (tainted) candidates. No one has the right to dismantle the education system. Who will run these schools? Who will handle all the work? No one has the right to starve anyone. My request is do not take away jobs if you cannot provide them. The education department will do what is necessary," she said, addressing around 7,000 people at the Netaji Indoor Stadium.
"I know I can be jailed for saying this but I don't care. Standing with people in distress is my prime concern," she added, advising those affected by the SC verdict to continue working at their schools as they were yet to get termination notices. "Continue working. Everyone can work voluntarily," she said, adding that "eligible" teachers could continue their work till the clarification came. She would also ensure there was no "service break", she promised.
Banerjee, detailing her legal plan of action, said the SSC would first seek a clarification from SC. "We need to know what the court's explanation is before we conduct fresh exams," she added.
"There is no need for secrecy. We will act according to law. We are bound by the SC ruling and are taking proactive steps to ensure that the situation is handled with utmost care and fairness. We will explore all possible legal avenues, including seeking a modification of the verdict, so that those affected get justice," she said, adding that she was aware that some people were recording her statements and sending them to Supreme Court. "I have studied law and whatever I am saying is within the ambit of law," she added.
The state was in talks with a battery of senior SC advocates — Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Kapil Sibal, Rakesh Dwivedi, Kalyan Banerjee and Prashant Bhushan — who would fight to protect "eligible" teachers' rights and file a review petition before SC to reconsider its verdict, the CM said. A liaison committee, including the affected school staff, will coordinate with SC advocates and state govt. State education minister Bratya Basu later met some of the school staff to set up the liaison committee.
"We will take whatever alternative action that is necessary, even if the verdict does not go in our favour. The process will be completed within two months, your service will not be interrupted and you will receive additional concessions," Banerjee said. "We can arrange for jobs in other departments," she added without elaborating.
Banerjee's speech was disrupted several times as objections came in from the audience. "Let us first resolve the issue of the ‘eligible' teachers. Then I will review the evidence against those labelled ‘ineligible'; but I will not be able to help if they are really found to be ineligible. Let us first conduct an investigation first. Do not fight among yourselves till then and have faith in me," she said.
Banerjee also attacked CPM and BJP, asking those rendered jobless not to trust opposition parties; opposition politicians were responsible for their current state, she told them. "Why did Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya file a case? Answers must be given. CPM must respond to this," she said, referring to the case that culminated in the SC verdict.
Banerjee also referred to the Vyapam scam in BJP-governed Madhya Pradesh and mentioned the dismissal of around 10,000 teachers in CPM-ruled Tripura. "Not a single teacher has got back their job despite BJP's election manifesto promise that the affected teachers would be reinstated," she said.