West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has warned protesting teachers not to cross the “Lakshman Rekha” of andolan (agitation), urging them to pursue legal avenues instead of stage dharnas.
“We are all humans. We can love those who have respect for humanity. I am not against andolan. However, there is a ‘Lakshman Rekha’ for an andolan. Just like I cannot stop anyone, nobody can stop me either. I would suggest they fight the issue legally. We will help them—we are already doing so. We are not against them,” Banerjee said.
On April 3, the Supreme Court termed the 2016 School Service Commission (SSC) recruitment process as “vitiated and tainted by fraud”, and upheld a Calcutta High Court order on an alleged school jobs scam case. As a result, almost 26,000 teaching and non-teaching jobs were nullified.
Teachers have been demonstrating in front of Bikash Bhawan — the Education Department headquarters. The protest turned violent on May 15, prompting baton charges from the police. Several teachers and police personnel were injured.
Banerjee criticised the Opposition and others who filed legal cases against the teacher selection process, asserting that the state government never intended to remove teachers from their jobs.
“I have an issue with something—those who are provoking them are the ones who filed cases. The jobs weren’t lost because of us. Those responsible should not have done this,” she said.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) All India General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee said, “Everyone has the right to demonstrate, but it cannot be violent. An andolan cannot involve vandalising government property, breaking gates, or using force. That defeats its purpose. This is my belief,” he said.
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Before departing on a four-day visit to North Bengal, Mamata Banerjee addressed the media at Kolkata airport, urging eligible teachers to have faith in the state government.
“They should have trusted the state government. I personally met with them. We expect minimum courtesy and dignity from teachers. They should work for society beyond politics. They should teach students. Many are doing so, and we have no complaints against them—even those staging the andolan,” she said.
She added, “My only grouse is that others should not be blocked or harmed through road blockades. There are more outsiders in the protest than teachers. A pregnant mother was locked in for hours… A girl examinee had to jump out in fear and was hospitalised for her injuries.”
The Chief Minister reiterated her sympathy for the teachers but stressed the need to respect court orders.
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“Please don’t ask me to say anything more. I have always had sympathy for them. We are filing a review. We must follow the law and abide by court orders. Our lawyers are working to ensure their jobs remain intact,” she said.
She clarified that no salaries had been withheld so far. “Group-C and Group-D workers who will not be paid will receive an allowance under a scheme we’ve set up.”
Speaking at Kolkata airport before leaving for Delhi, Abhishek Banerjee said, “While I am not blaming anyone, I have seen some footage of people breaking open the gate. An andolan can never be extreme or violent. Gandhiji spoke about Ahimsa and non-violence. We demonstrated in Delhi over the MGNREGA dues. Over 10,000 people from Bengal went there. Along with the common people, the elected representatives — including the women and tribal leaders — were dragged out by their hair. We chose non-violence to stage an andolan. The next day, we staged a dharna outside the Raj Bhavan. We never opted for the path of violence.”
He concluded, “The state government has clarified its intent. We’ve filed a review petition and the matter is sub-judice. Keep faith in the judiciary. If not today, then tomorrow, justice will prevail.”
