West Bengal Education Minister Commits to Release Lists of 'Genuine' and 'Tainted' SSC Candidates
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Synopsis
West Bengal Education Minister Bratya Basu has promised to publish a segregated list of 'genuine' and 'tainted' SSC candidates, contingent upon legal advice. This follows a Supreme Court ruling affecting many teaching and non-teaching staff who lost their jobs.
Key Takeaways
- West Bengal Education Minister assures jobless staff of segregated lists.
- Segregation process expected to finish by April 13.
- Publication of lists to depend on legal advice.
- Protests from affected staff to persist until job reinstatements.
- Supreme Court ruling invalidated over 25,000 appointments.
Kolkata, April 11 (NationPress) The Education Minister of West Bengal, Bratya Basu, assured the teaching and non-teaching personnel who lost their positions in state-run schools due to a recent Supreme Court ruling that a segregated list of 'genuine' and 'tainted' candidates will be published, but only following appropriate legal counsel.
After a lengthy four-hour discussion between the State Education Minister and a group representing those who lost their jobs, it was reported that Minister Basu stated legal consultations are underway and that the segregated list might be made available based on legal recommendations.
During the meeting, Siddhartha Majumdar, the Chairman of the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC), informed us that the segregation process has commenced and is anticipated to conclude by April 13. Following that, efforts will be made to release the two distinct lists by April 21, strictly adhering to legal advice. We were also informed that the original optical marks recognition (OMR) sheets are unavailable. The Chairman mentioned that had the original images existed, the Central Bureau of Investigation could have tracked them down. Currently, only the soft copies of these images are available, which may also be published based on legal advice, as claimed by a member of the delegation after the meeting.
Despite the assurances, he noted that those who lost their jobs do not feel fully reassured and will continue their protests until their jobs are reinstated.
Later, speaking to the press, the State Education Minister confirmed that the state government agrees with the demand for the publication of the segregated list.
“The WBSSC has details regarding this matter based on information provided by the CBI. The court has also been informed about the situation. There is now a public demand for transparency. We are not opposed to this; however, everything will be executed according to legal advice,” he explained.
Last week, the Supreme Court's division bench, led by Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar, upheld a prior ruling by the Calcutta High Court's division bench composed of Justices Debangshu Basak and Rashidi, which annulled a total of 25,753 appointments made by the WBSSC due to the state government's and commission's failure to distinguish between 'genuine' candidates and those who received jobs through illicit payments.
It has been alleged that the segregation was impossible because the original OMR sheets were destroyed, and the mirror images were not preserved, purportedly to shield the 'tainted' candidates who secured jobs by making illegal payments.
