Teacher hiring scam: 423 more to get the sack
Pinak Priya Bhattacharya, TNN, Dec 21, 2010, 03.38am IST
JALPAIGURI: The Jalpaiguri primary teacher recruitment scam is snowballing into a disaster for the CPM-led government. The state education department, which had suspended 16 fresh recruits in August, has announced disciplinary steps against 423 others — 79 more that it originally planned. That's a shocking 40% of the merit list. What's more, the state government is already calling them 'delinquents'. It is turning into a huge embarrassment for the ruling party since nearly 70% of the recruits are said to be CPM loyalists, relatives of CPM leaders or officials of District Primary School Council (DPSC). Among the 16 suspended in the first phase (after an inquiry) are the wife of then DPSC chairman Mrinal Paul and the daughter-in-law of the Jalpaiguri CPM secretary Manik Sanyal. Paul has since been removed from his post.
There are allegations that some CPM leaders took `2.5-3 lakh each from candidates to secure them a place on the final list. The question papers were allegedly leaked to these candidates and the inquiry panel found that the examiners had given away surprisingly generous marks. Faced with such damning revelations, the state government had no option but to act.
On December 14, the education department sent a letter to the DPSC saying appointments of 423 candidates were "not proper" and they are liable for disciplinary action. The suspect candidates would be served showcause notices and given 15 days to reply. "After receipt of reply or if no reply is received, the disciplinary authority shall issue a chargesheet, framing charges against the delinquent teachers," the letter reads.
The education department has asked the DPSC to cancel the empanelment of candidates whose appointment letters are yet to be sent and withdraw appointment letters of candidates who have not joined the posts. This is a clear indication that the government is not ready to continue with the 423 recruits.
"There have been irregularities in tabulating the Madhyamik marks of the candidates. Certificates have been fabricated, and there are many other things that I am not supposed to disclose. We will serve the showcause notices 10 days from now," said DI, primary, Kallol Roy on Monday, refusing to show journalists a copy of the letter.
The irregularities were so blatant that district tribal welfare officer D K Bardua, who was the administration's representative in the recruitment process, refused to approve it. But that had no effect as the results were published without his signature. The education department then set up an inquiry committee under joint secretary T K Adhikary. Its report opened a can of worms. District inspector of schools, primary, Kaushik Roy, who was also secretary of DPSC was demoted. The AI, primary, of Malbazar, Jugal Kishore Bera, was transferred. His wife, Anita Mondol, was among those selected.
इसी अखबार ने दो दिन पहले खबर दी ,उसे भी पढ़ें-
Exposed: Dirty dealings for teaching jobs
JALPAIGURI: The Jalpaiguri primary teacher recruitment scam is snowballing into a disaster for the CPM-led government. The state education department, which had suspended 16 fresh recruits in August, has announced disciplinary steps against 423 others — 79 more that it originally planned. That's a shocking 40% of the merit list. What's more, the state government is already calling them 'delinquents'. It is turning into a huge embarrassment for the ruling party since nearly 70% of the recruits are said to be CPM loyalists, relatives of CPM leaders or officials of District Primary School Council (DPSC). Among the 16 suspended in the first phase (after an inquiry) are the wife of then DPSC chairman Mrinal Paul and the daughter-in-law of the Jalpaiguri CPM secretary Manik Sanyal. Paul has since been removed from his post.
There are allegations that some CPM leaders took `2.5-3 lakh each from candidates to secure them a place on the final list. The question papers were allegedly leaked to these candidates and the inquiry panel found that the examiners had given away surprisingly generous marks. Faced with such damning revelations, the state government had no option but to act.
On December 14, the education department sent a letter to the DPSC saying appointments of 423 candidates were "not proper" and they are liable for disciplinary action. The suspect candidates would be served showcause notices and given 15 days to reply. "After receipt of reply or if no reply is received, the disciplinary authority shall issue a chargesheet, framing charges against the delinquent teachers," the letter reads.
The education department has asked the DPSC to cancel the empanelment of candidates whose appointment letters are yet to be sent and withdraw appointment letters of candidates who have not joined the posts. This is a clear indication that the government is not ready to continue with the 423 recruits.
"There have been irregularities in tabulating the Madhyamik marks of the candidates. Certificates have been fabricated, and there are many other things that I am not supposed to disclose. We will serve the showcause notices 10 days from now," said DI, primary, Kallol Roy on Monday, refusing to show journalists a copy of the letter.
The irregularities were so blatant that district tribal welfare officer D K Bardua, who was the administration's representative in the recruitment process, refused to approve it. But that had no effect as the results were published without his signature. The education department then set up an inquiry committee under joint secretary T K Adhikary. Its report opened a can of worms. District inspector of schools, primary, Kaushik Roy, who was also secretary of DPSC was demoted. The AI, primary, of Malbazar, Jugal Kishore Bera, was transferred. His wife, Anita Mondol, was among those selected.
इसी अखबार ने दो दिन पहले खबर दी ,उसे भी पढ़ें-
Exposed: Dirty dealings for teaching jobs
Pinak Priya Bhattacharya, TNN, Dec 19, 2010,
Want to be a primary school teacher in Bengal? Qualification does not matter. Nor does talent, apparently. You only need to be a close relative to a ruling party leader. And if you don't fulfil the first criteria, you can also pay your way through, some 2.5 lakh in the least. You will get a leaked copy of the question papers in advance and if that's still tough for you, some helpful invigilators will be extremely generous with your marks.Till the other day, this was just an allegation. The scam over primary teacher recruitment in Jalpaiguri has proved that it is based on firm grounds. The ruling party leaders in Jalpaiguri got a little too greedy this time or desperate perhaps because of the winds of change. Over 70% of the new recruits this year are known CPM loyalists either DYFI or SFI activists, say sources. Many of these candidates got above 90% in the written test.They include the wife of Mrinal Paul, the chairman of the District Primary School Council (DPSC), which conducts the recruitment exam, and the daughter in law of Jalpaiguri district CPM secretary Manik Sanyal.
Such largescale irregularity was not likely to go undetected. Paul has since been removed from his post. More heads are rolling. The state education department has decided to suspend 344 recruits, in addition to the 16 suspended a few days ago, and is set to serve showcause notices on the 14 teachers who examined the test papers. The Opposition has already smelt blood. The scam is going to hurt the CPM, cornered as it is, even more in the run-up to the assembly election.The Last Straw The problem begins with the fact that no commission monitors primary teacher recruitment in Bengal. Teachers are always recruited in bulk, so the ruling party has always tried to get its own people empanelled.When the results were published in August this year, it came as a shock that most of the selected candidates were either from families of top district leaders of the party or were relatives of DPSC employees. There are also instances where more than one candidate has got selected from the house of a DPSC worker or CPM leader.It is learnt that owing to the discrepancies, district tribal welfare officer D K Bardua, who was the administration's representative in the recruitment process, refused to approve it. But that had no effect as the results were published without his signature.Now, though, the times are different. Trinamool Congress and Congress launched a massive agitation across the district. They gheraoed the DPSC office, staged dharnas in front of the Kotwali police station, and took out rallies. Hundreds of youths, who were rejected in the exam, started lodging complaints.
With pressure mounting, Jalpaiguri district magistrate Vandana Yadav asked the state education department to start an inquiry. The probe committee reported gross irregularities, following which the education department suspended 16 new recruits, including Manik Sanyal's daughter-in-law.DPSC chairman Mrinal Paul was removed immediately since his wife, Anita Das, had been selected. The rules prohibit a sitting chairman's relatives from appearing in the exam. DI, primary, Kaushik Roy, who was also secretary of DPSC was demoted. The AI, primary, of Malbazar, Jugal Kishore Bera, was transferred. His wife, Anita Mondol, was among those selected.On examining the test papers, the enquiry committee is said to have found that some candidates fetched undeservedly high marks in essay writing. "The distribution of marks was significant enough to convince the committee that the recruitment process was mishandled," said a source. The Jalpaiguri DPSC had called 21,000 candidates for the written examination for 1,411 posts. Appointments were given to 1,091 candidates and 320 posts were withheld'. The education department has decided to suspend a shocking 33% of the recruits.
Why did it all happen?First, it was the pressure from party members in Jalpaiguri, who thought this would be their last chance to grab some goodies before next year's assembly election. Second, some CPM leaders wanted to make quick money.Leave aside the opposition, even members of the CPM's teacher's wing, the All Bengal Primary Teachers' Association, alleges that a section of party leaders had taken a lot of money from candidates, anything from Rs.2.5 lakh to Rs 3 lakh. A few influential CPM leaders allegedly controlled the entire process with the help of some DYFI and SFI leaders. It is also alleged that the question paper was leaked to chosen candidates and that the invigilators selectively turned a blind eye to cheating in the exam. None of these allegations could be corroborated, though.
But why were CPM leaders so desperate? It is becoming clearer to them that the party may not be able to withstand the winds of change, so party cadres started pressurizing leaders for jobs. The leaders, too, knew that if they did not take a last-ditch risk, they will not be able to hold on to their cadres for long. Wary of mass desertion from the ranks, some leaders got involved in the scam. Some others were in a hurry to make money.Initially, the Jalpaiguri CPM leadership tried to bluff and browbeat its way out of the mess. They went hammer and tongs at the Opposition, insisting that the allegations were baseless. "CPM has got nothing to do with the recruitment. It was done completely with accordance with all the rules of the primary school council. It's the candidates who did not get selected that are raising questions," Manik Sanyal had told TOI in August.Now the CPM is on the back foot and the leaders running for cover. When TOI contacted Sanyal on Saturday, he said: "I am not going speak on the issue."Consequences Not only Congress and Trinamool, a large section of SFI and DYFI activists are also upset by the recruitment scam because it affects the party's image.
"The party leadership has consistently misguided us. When the results came out, our leaders told us that even candidates with Congress and Trinamool background had been selected. Later we found that it was not true. Even when the first 16 candidates were suspended, our leaders claimed all was well. Now, with the government deciding to suspend another 344 new recruits, we are finding it really difficult to face questions that people are throwing at us," a DYFI leader said."We ended up looking like fools. The common people are taunting us," an SFI supporter said."Earlier, too, CPM used to influence the recruitment process to have their relatives selected. But this time they crossed all limits," alleged Chandan Bhowmick, secretary general of Jalpaiguri Trinamool Congress."This is the real character of CPM and even their party cadres have started understanding that," said Jalpaiguri Youth Congress president Saikat Chatterjee.
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