The Bidhannagar North Police Station had summoned 15 protesting teachers to appear for questioning in connection with Thursday’s violence in front of Bikash Bhawan. However, on Monday, none of the summoned teachers turned up at the police station.
Chinmoy Mondol, a key face of the protest, told The Indian Express, “We are consulting with our legal counsel and will follow their advice. If they want to issue notices, they should issue them to all of us, not just 15. They are trying to divide us and scare us into backing down, but we will not. We are fighting for our rights.”
Meanwhile, State Education Minister Bratya Basu told mediapersons on Monday, “… There is no point in holding agitations in front of SSC Bhawan or Bikash Bhawan. Hampering the duties of the other Government workers may lead to contempt of court, that is not what is desired for their future…. There is nothing new to be discussed, those who are in the sit-in protest, I want to say have faith in us, we are fighting for them. We have submitted the review petition, let us wait for that… What teachers should do is go back to school… I have no communication from them regarding what their demands are.” He refused to comment on the police summons.
On the 13th day of the protest outside Bikash Bhawan, Monday, the teachers displayed a banner with photographs of those allegedly assaulted during last Thursday’s incident where police and teachers clashed. This follows the police summoning 15 protestors for questioning across Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.
One of the protesting teachers told The Indian Express, “We were the ones assaulted, we were the ones who lost our jobs, and we are the ones sitting on the streets instead of teaching in classrooms. Now we are being summoned by the police. This is what our students are seeing—that their teachers are being harassed.”
The teachers are protesting under the banner of Jogya Shikshak Shikshika Adhikar Mancha (JSSAM). On April 3, the Supreme Court annulled the appointments of over 25,000 teaching and non-teaching staff recruited through the 2016 West Bengal School Service Commission (SSC) examinations. Minister Basu said Monday that a notice for fresh exams for the candidates of the cancelled process will be out within the timespan stipulated by the SC.
Meanwhile, on Monday, a group of Salt Lake residents near the protest site approached a division bench of the Calcutta High Court, comprising Justices Soumen Sen and Raja Basu Chowdhury, seeking permission to file a public interest litigation (PIL). The petitioners claimed the protest and accompanying police security were disrupting daily life in the area.
While the court allowed the filing of the matter, Justice Soumen Sen made a key observation: “If there are any complaints regarding police security, the matter should be filed before a single bench alleging excessive police activity. This can never be a public interest litigation.” He said that most PILs are “for publicity” and lack actual public interest.
Simultaneously, some of the protesting teachers have moved the Calcutta High Court, alleging that the Bidhannagar police have falsely implicated them in criminal cases. According to their counsel, protestors Indrajit Mondol and Sudip Konar have been falsely named. The Bidhannagar Commissionerate had issued summons for their appearance on Tuesday. The High Court has allowed the filing of the case, with a hearing expected on Wednesday before Justice Tirthankar Ghosh.
Separately, the West Bengal Commission for Protection of Child Rights has raised concerns about children being present at the protest site, where open classes were reportedly held. The Commission believes the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 may have been violated and has sought a report from the Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate within three days to determine how the children were brought there.
A protesting teacher responded, “The students came on their own to support their teachers in their fight for justice. We did not force any student to attend.”