West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday pledged to protect the rights of “eligible candidates” who lost their jobs after the Supreme Court verdict, and asserted that she would continue fighting for them as long as she is alive and even if it meant going to jail.
Speaking at a meeting with those who lost their jobs after the apex court verdict, Banerjee urged the affected teachers and staff to return to their respective schools and “voluntarily” resume duties.
“Even if I have to go to jail, I will keep fighting to ensure no deserving candidate is deprived of job – this is my promise, as long as I am alive,” she said in an emotionally charged message at the Netaji Indoor Stadium here.
Speaking at a packed gathering of affected teaching and non-teaching staffers, Banerjee said, “No one has received any termination letter yet. So continue with your work. You are free to offer voluntary service in the meantime.”
The Supreme Court on April 3 upheld a 2024 Calcutta High Court judgment annulling the recruitment of 25,753 teachers and non-teaching staffers appointed through the 2016 School Service Commission (SSC) recruitment drive, terming the entire selection process “vitiated and tainted”.
Banerjee said the state administration would first seek “clarification” from the apex court, and if needed, file a review petition “to ensure the interests of eligible candidates are safeguarded”. “If the clarification is not in our favour, we will make alternative arrangements within two months. No eligible candidate will be jobless. The government has not sent any termination letters. You can continue to teach voluntarily,” she said.
“Who will manage the schools now? Who will handle all the other tasks? If someone is not in a position to provide jobs, they shouldn’t have the authority to take them away either,” the CM said.
