Kolkata: Members of the Unemployed Qualified Teachers’ Forum have given a call for a march to West Bengal Legislative Assembly on Thursday, demanding reinstatement of their jobs in state-run schools.
An April 2025 Supreme Court verdict had resulted in the loss of jobs of teachers and non-teaching staff in West Bengal Government-run schools.
The Unemployed Qualified Teachers’ Forum members have also written a letter to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Assembly Speaker Biman Banerjee, requesting the government to convene a special session of the Assembly to discuss the matter.
At present a special session is going on in the state Assembly which will conclude tomorrow.
Suman Biswas, convenor of the forum said in a video message, “Our request is that a special session be held in the Assembly tomorrow, on September 4 to discuss our issues. An all-party meeting should be called in this regard. We are qualified teachers and we will not sit in the fresh examination. Our jobs were stolen by the SSC and the ruling party. Our jobs must be reinstated.”
In another video, Biswas gave a call to organise a peaceful march to the Assembly tomorrow to ask the state government to address their demand.
“We must organise a peaceful march by adhering to law and order and without disturbing the common man. We will force the chief minister to convene a special session and discuss our matter,” said Biswas.
A Supreme Court verdict in April this year had resulted in the loss of jobs of about 26,000 teachers and non-teaching staff in West Bengal Government-run schools. A case has been going on in the Supreme Court regarding this for a long time.
Following the Supreme Court’s order, the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) recently published the list of ‘tainted and ineligible’ candidates. After that, a section of ‘eligible’ candidates have demanded the publication of their list and reinstatement of such candidates in teaching jobs they lost due to the Apex Court’s order.
They have also demanded the cancellation of the fresh examination announced by the WBSSC on September 7 and 14.
It may be noted that on Monday, Biswas had alleged that he was heckled by a policeman after he tried to visit the WBSSC office in Kolkata’s Salt Lake area. Later, a Calcutta High Court order allowed him and four others to visit the WBSSC office on that day.
Last month, Biswas was detained for over eight hours after he had given a call for a march to WBSSC office over the same issue. The march, however, could not be held following his detention by the police.
(IANS)
