WB recruitment scam: TMC does damage control; BJP trains guns at Paresh Adhikary
A few hundred candidates have been protesting in the city against the irregularities due to the scam and have been demanding their ‘rightful jobs’ for the past 502 days
Under fire following senior leader Partha Chatterjee’s alleged involvement in the multi-crore teacher’s recruitment scam, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Friday pressed the damage control button as people have taken to the streets in protest against the state government.
West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s nephew and TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee today met Staff Selection Commission (SSC) candidates who have been protesting in the state capital for the last 502 days.
The development comes a day after the chief minister sacked Chatterjee from the state cabinet and the TMC suspended him from the party. He was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on July 23 for his alleged involvement in the scam.
An eight-member team of SSC candidates, who cleared the recruitment exam held in 2017 but didn’t get jobs due to the scam, met Abhishek Banerjee at his Camac Street office in south Kolkata; state education minister Bratya Basu was also present.
A few hundred candidates have been protesting in the city against the irregularities and have been demanding their ‘rightful jobs’ for the past 502 days. On several occasions, scuffles broke out between protestors and the police when the latter tried to disperse the crowd.
“Abhishek Banerjee assured he will try his 100% to ensure all candidates, who qualified the 2016 exams for the jobs of assistant teachers in government schools for classes IX-XII, get recruited by solving the legal and administrative issues. Our next meeting will be held with the state education minister on August 8. We are happy with today’s meeting,” said Sahidulla, one of the candidates who attended the meeting.
Also Read:SSC scam: Partha Chatterjee, removed as minister and suspended from TMC, alleges ‘conspiracy’
Even as the SSC candidates met the TMC MP, who is also the party’s national general secretary, those who qualified TET (teacher eligibility test) for the post of teachers in primary schools staged a protest demanding that they too be allowed to meet him.
On Friday, Chatterjee said he was a “victim of conspiracy”, while being taken to the ESI hospital for a routine check-up. Reporters also questioned the CM’s decision to sack him and the party’s decision to suspend him.
“I am a victim of conspiracy. See the party’s decision. Mamata’s decision is right. Time will tell (he said when asked about party’s decision). Neutrality of the probe may get influenced,” he told reporters at the ESI Hospital.
Arpita Mukherjee, a small-time actor and close associate of Chatterjee, was also arrested and taken into custody by the ED. She broke down and refused to come out of the agency’s car at the hospital, and had to be forcefully taken in a wheelchair. Mukherjee earlier told the media that she was innocent.
“He should tell if he knows the people who are conspiring against him, else let him not make such statements. People would suspect him all the more,” said BJP national vice-president Dilip Ghosh.
Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday trained guns at West Bengal minister Paresh Adhikary. The Calcutta high court had in May removed the junior education minister’s daughter Ankita from the job of a teacher in a government-run school for using fraudulent means to land the job.
“West Bengal MoS Education Paresh Adhikari misused his office and appointed his daughter as a teacher in govt school. High court removed her in illegal appointment but he still continues to be the Minister. When will @MamataOfficial take action against him? She has to answer,” tweeted BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar.
The TMC was quick to launch a counter-attack, aimed at leader of opposition in the state legislative assembly Suvendu Adhikari. He was earlier with the TMC before switching camps to the BJP in December 2020 ahead of the 2021 assembly elections.
“The TMC was getting allegations against Adhikary and that’s why the party had removed him from the post of observer of some districts. Later, he joined the BJP. Investigating agencies should go there. They may find a treasure trove. He should be arrested in Narada and Saradha scams,” said TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh.
