Bengal edu dept gets contempt notice as job-losing teachers attend schools

Four senior bureaucrats attached to the West Bengal education department were served contempt of court notices for reportedly allowing a section of the , who lost jobs after the Supreme Court's verdict, to attend the schools they were associated with.

Last week, a division bench of the Supreme Court upheld an earlier order by the Calcutta High Court last year cancelling 25,753 teaching and non-teaching staff on grounds that the state government and the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) had failed in segregating the "genuine" candidates from the "tainted" ones who allegedly secured jobs against payment of money.

After that, at a meeting with a section of the job-losing teachers, chief minister Mamata Banerjee appealed to them to continue attending their schools and offer voluntary services.

Even the updated salary portal for the teaching and non-teaching staff in state-run schools showed these job losers on the payroll.

The contempt of court notice to the four bureaucrats said that job-losing teachers attending their school is in direct violation of the Supreme Court order and hence tantamount to contempt of court.

The notices have been served to the principal secretary to the state school education department Vinod Kumar, commissioner of state school education Arup Sengupta, WBSSC chairman Siddhartha Majumdar and West Bengal Board of Secondary Education (WBBSE) president Ramanuj Gangopadhyay.

The notices have been served on behalf of five individuals, namely Babita Sarkar, Nasrin Khtaun, Laxmi Tunga, Setabuddin and Abdul Gani Ansari.

Earlier this week, a Delhi-based advocate, Siddhartha Datta, sent chief minister Banerjee a contempt of court notice over her recent comments on the verdict of the Supreme Court.

Dutta said: "Everyone is bound by the apex court's order, but the chief minister's recent comments indicate the state government will not implement the verdict."