Woman shaves head in protest as job aspirants' agitation reaches 1,000th day in Kolkata

In a poignant display of frustration, a woman protestor shaved her head as the ongoing demonstration by job aspirants in Kolkata entered its 1,000th day. The protestors, numbering in the thousands, are individuals who successfully cleared the State-Level Selection Test conducted by the West Bengal Central School Service Commission (WBCSSC) in 2016 but allege being denied employment due to a recruitment scandal in the state.

Since March 2021, they have been staging protests in central Kolkata. The agitation gained momentum on Saturday, drawing attention from leaders of various political parties, including the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and its rival, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), who rushed to the protest site.

“We are all educated and have cleared the exam. But still we are sitting on the roads. What is our fault? When we will get our rightful job?” Rashmani Patra, the woman protestor who shaved her head, told the media as she broke down into tears. As the demonstrators opened their shirts and shouted slogans demanding employment, political leaders weighed in on the issue.

Biman Bose, Left Front chairman, criticized the state government, stating, "A woman job aspirant had to shave her head. The state government should see this and feel ashamed." The protest has endured for over three years, with participants seeking justice for an alleged recruitment scam. In May 2022, the Calcutta High Court ordered a CBI probe into the matter, and the ED initiated a parallel investigation. TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh assured that the chief minister and state education minister are actively working towards a resolution, emphasizing the complexity of the situation, which is currently sub-judice.