CM assures retrenched teachers of taking a positive initiative for their jobs

By Our Correspondent

Agartala, September 28, 2022

The chief minister Dr Manik Saha has assured six representatives of retrenched 10,323 teachers of taking a positive initiative regarding their claimed reinstatement in service . As promised in the state assembly the chief minister had invited the representatives of the retrenched teachers for a discussion in his official chamber regarding their claims and demands in his official chamber . The advocate general Sasanka Sekhar De and the law secretary Biswajit Palit were also present in the discussion held in the chief minister’s official chamber.

As directed by the chief minister the representatives of retrenched teachers led by Bijay Krishna Saha explained how according to the high court judgment of 2014 (Para-127) only teachers whose jobs had been challenged on the ground of recruitment rules-not more than 58-had been terminated. This was upheld by the supreme court in its order dated 29th March 2017 with directives on need for adherence to central rule on education. But nowhere it was written that the jobs of all 10,323 teachers had been terminated. They also pointed out that both in the case in high court as well as in supreme court only 462 teachers had been parties and noticed. Recently in reply to RTI queries the supreme court has clarified that no teacher except the 462 noticed had been parties to the case and their claims to reinstatement is justified as they had been illegally terminated en masse without any individual notice.

Having heard out the representatives of retrenched teachers the chief ministers saw the papers and documentary evidence submitted by the teachers and said that he was not fully aware of all the details . He however called for more ,papers, assuring the teachers that he will examine them even as he directed the law secretary and advocate general to peruse all papers and suggest ways and means of resolving the problem. Dr Saha told the teachers that he will sit with them again after the ‘Durga Puja’ for an early solution to their problems.

After the talks the leader of the teachers delegation Bijay Krishna Saha expressed his satisfaction over the talks and expressed the hope that a solution to the longstanding problem will be found . Interestingly, two other retrenched teachers Arabinda Sharma and Pradip Banik , known to be cronies of BJP, also expressed hope that the problem will be resolved soon. Significantly, the chief minister Dr Manik Saha’s approach today was altogether different from what his predecessor Biplab Kumar Deb had done. It was on October 2 2019 that Biplab Deb had similarly assured the delegation of retrenched teachers that he would solve their problem in two months. But he did not keep his word and then let loose police and TSR to disperse a peaceful sit-in of the retrenched teachers in Paradise Chaumuhuni on January 27 by lathi-charging and tear-gassing them after they had tried to gherao his house.