SDMC withdraws order cancelling appointment of over 3,000 teachers

New Delhi

New Delhi

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The South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) on Tuesday withdrew the order cancelling the appointment of 3,778 primary teachers for schools run by the three municipal corporations. However, ambiguity prevailed over whether the teachers will be asked to join or not.

The newly appointed teachers for around 1,600 municipal schools had to join on Tuesday.

“The public notice dated 14/10/2019 issued by assistant director of education (TRC), vide which the recruitment process of primary teachers was held in abeyance and the appointment letters were cancelled, is hereby withdrawn,” read a SDMC public notice issued by director education SDMC Shirish Sharma on Tuesday.

Whan asked about the joining of the teachers, Sharma refused to speak on the matter.

The Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) had on Monday cancelled the appointment of the teachers after an applicant challenged the results of the municipal teachers’ recruitment exam held Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board (DSSSB) in September-October 2018. In the petition, the applicant had said that the exams were held online and in different batches but many questions and their serial numbers were same.

Following the CAT orders, the SDMC, which is the nodal agency for the recruitment of teachers for the three municipal corporations, had on Monday evening issued a public notice saying the recruitment process is “kept in abeyance” and all appointment letters issued “are cancelled”.

Agitated over cancellation of their joining letters, a number of aspirants also staged demonstration at the Delhi secretariat and also blocked a road in Shahdara.

The issue rocked the house meeting of the SDMC where Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress councillors criticised the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government for showing “laxity” in the recruitment process and “playing” with the future of thousands of aspirants.

The SDMC house meeting also passed a “Ninda Prastav” (censure motion) against the Delhi government’s DSSSB for not conducting the recruitment properly. The matter was raised in the House by Congress councillor Abhishek Dutt.

“Many aspirants left their jobs to join as primary teachers in the schools run by municipal corporations. But due to laxity shown by the DSSSB in conducting the exams, the future of over 3000 aspirants hangs in balance,” Dutt said.

Leader of the House, Kamaljeet Sehrawat said municipal schools are facing a shortage of teachers. “The government should be made answerable for this (laxity in recruitment exam),” she said.

The director education, SDMC, informed the house that the order regarding holding the recruitment process and cancelling the joining letters had been withdrawn by the corporation. “It was issued after our counsel, who was present in the court (tribunal), told us about the order. We are yet to get the CAT order officially. The public notice was issued to avoid any mistake. We will re-issue the joining letters after we get orders from the court,” Sharma said in the House.

A Delhi government spokesperson said, “This whole matter concerns services department whose jurisdiction is under dispute. The matter is in the Supreme Court and the L-G remains defacto in-charge of the department until the court takes a final call.”