Abhishek Banerjee Accuses CPI(M) and BJP of Colluding to Deprive Eligible Teachers of Jobs

Senior Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee on Monday alleged that the opposition BJP and CPIM have joined hands to take away employment opportunities of the eligible youths of West Bengal.Speaking at an election rally in Amta in Howrah district, he said the TMC government will fight the legal battle needed to secure the future of eligible teaching job aspirants.Banerjee was alluding to the Calcutta High Courts order cancelling appointments of 25,753 teachers and non-teaching staff made through the recruitment process of State Level Selection Test-2016 SLST in state-run schools, declaring the selection process as null and void.

Senior Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee on Monday alleged that the opposition BJP and CPI(M) have joined hands to take away employment opportunities of the eligible youths of West Bengal.

Speaking at an election rally in Amta in Howrah district, he said the TMC government will fight the legal battle needed to secure the future of eligible teaching job aspirants.

Banerjee was alluding to the Calcutta High Court's order cancelling appointments of 25,753 teachers and non-teaching staff made through the recruitment process of State Level Selection Test-2016 (SLST) in state-run schools, declaring the selection process as ''null and void''. The West Bengal government has moved the Supreme Court challenging the order.

''The CPI(M) and BJP have conspired to take away jobs. We are making moves to create job opportunities and the two parties are trying to stop the process. They are filing petitions to create legal hurdles in the recruitment process. We will stand firmly with those deserving candidates,'' Banerjee said.

Following the April 22 court order, the TMC has said that the people would not forgive BJP leaders for ''conspiring to snatch'' the livelihood of nearly 26,000 teachers. Banerjee slammed the CPI(M) apparently because the party's Rajya Sabha MP Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya, a senior advocate, represented several petitioners in the case.

Accusing the BJP as tormentors of women, minorities and Dalits, Banerjee said, ''What happened in Gujarat, UP and other BJP-ruled states proves that the party sheds crocodiles tears when it talks about security and safety of women.'' The TMC national general secretary also blamed the BJP for trying to change the Constitution, belittle democratic values and use central agencies to intimidate dissenting voices.

''But they cannot scare the TMC. We will singlehandedly repulse the attack of outsider BJP on Bengal's self-respect, dignity and rights. We are not like CPI(M) and Congress who are not concerned about the deprivation of 100 days' wages to the poor by the Centre, the non-release of Awas Yojana funds,'' he said.

Banerjee said the state spends Rs 25,000 crore every year for giving funds under women's social welfare scheme 'Lakshmir Bhandar' for the 2.12 crore women and accused the BJP of conspiring to stop that financial assistance project.

He also said the Ghatal Masterplan will be commissioned ''by the end of this year'' by the state.

The Ghatal Master Plan aims to protect the flood-prone Paschim Medinipur district and contagious areas from large-scale destruction due to flooding.

Banerjee later held a roadshow from Dasnagar to Baltikuri in Howrah.

At a rally after the roadshow in Howrah town, Banerjee said instead of talking about 'food, clothes and shelter', the basic needs of human beings, the BJP made pledges on building temples, talked about catering to Hindus, Muslims separately forgetting about people's basic livelihood issues.

''The BJP is against holding elections to various people's representative bodies which take place during their scheduled time every year. Instead, the party is mooting for the one nation, one vote theory that will take away our democratic rights and force us to vote once in five years. We don't wish to have such a government,'' he said.

Labelling the Lok Sabha elections as the ''protest, revenge and resistance'' against the ''anti-democratic stance'' of the Modi government, he said, ''Remember how they change elected state governments with cash.'' ''Remember, people of Maharastra had elected one government which was changed by BJP by horse trading,'' Banerjee added.

He claimed that the last two phases of Lok Sabha polls were ''surgical strikes into the BJP den by TMC,'' which have sent shivers down the ranks of the saffron party.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)