Dismissed SSC teachers in job scam demand 'clean list', warn of fresh street protests

Dismissed SSC teachers in West Bengal, whose appointments were cancelled in the 2016 recruitment scam, attempted to march to the state secretariat Nabanna on Monday. Their aim was to meet the Chief Minister and present their demands. However, police stopped them en route. These former teachers are now warning of renewed protests, demanding transparency and action on their long-pending demands.

The teachers are asking for the public release of a list identifying “clean” candidates from the 2016 recruitment process, whose appointments were not tainted by irregularities. They are also demanding the creation of additional posts, as directed by the Supreme Court, so that eligible candidates can appear for a fresh selection examination. The Supreme Court had cancelled 25,752 appointments on April 3, including teaching and non-teaching posts, and on April 17 allowed only the "clean" candidates to remain in service till December 31, subject to passing a fresh examination.

Former teacher leader Chinmoy Mandal said that age and mental stress make it difficult for many dismissed candidates to compete again for the same posts. He stated, “The clean list must be released immediately. Only then can this crisis be addressed.” Another leader, Suman Biswas, said the teachers would no longer participate in meetings with the government and that the movement would now shift entirely to the streets.

The West Bengal School Education Commission issued a fresh notification on May 30 for the re-examination. However, the notification did not clearly specify whether only clean candidates could appear for the exam, creating further uncertainty. Earlier, the Chief Minister had announced additional posts, increasing the number of vacancies to over 44,000, but no update was provided on the eligibility criteria in light of the court order.

On July 10, the Calcutta High Court directed that candidates previously found involved in the scam should have their applications cancelled. The dismissed teachers, seeking to establish that they were not part of any wrongdoing, continue to demand a fair and transparent process. They are urging the administration to remove ambiguity around eligibility and issue clear guidelines for the fresh selection.