West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. , Photo Credit: ANI
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday urged the judiciary not to snatch jobs suddenly and said those who have made mistakes should be given another chance. His remarks came after the Calcutta High Court directed the termination of jobs of around 842 Group C employees in state-run schools. “Please don’t take jobs at the drop of a hat. This is not politics,” said the Chief Minister.
“You may not like me. You may not like my government which is doing such a humanitarian work. If I do something wrong, slap me. I will not mind…. I have deliberately lived I have done nothing wrong,” said an emotional Ms. Banerjee.
Participating in an event organized by the Alipore Bar Association, he said that at least two people have lost their jobs by committing suicide recently. The Chief Minister cited an order of Supreme Court Justice (retired) Ashok Kumar Ganguly and said that the judge had said in the order, ‘If there is a mistake, rectify it’.
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Ms. Banerjee urged that the jobs of those whose services have been terminated should be given back to them legally. “If necessary they can appear in the exam again. Or the court can make some arrangements,” she said. Ms Banerjee said if people lost their jobs, it would be difficult for them to sustain themselves. Among the 842 candidates who lost their jobs recently, the names of many Trinamool leaders as well as relatives of leaders of opposition parties have come to the fore.
Earlier, the West Bengal government had filed an appeal before the High Court to create additional jobs for those who allegedly got jobs through illegal means. The High Court had rejected such submissions and raised the question on whose instructions these applications have been filed.
So far, more than 3,000 people, who got jobs in government schools through illegal means, have lost their jobs as per the directions of the High Court. The Chief Minister, who holds a law degree, said that sometimes she feels that she should argue before the courts. He said, ‘I have not taken a single CPI(M) cadre job after coming to power. Then why are jobs being taken away when there is no right to give jobs.
This statement of the Chief Minister drew sharp reactions from different corners. Justice Ganguly said that his order was based on facts and circumstances and his order cannot be compared with the present circumstances. He also said that the corruption in the current job scam has not been seen anywhere in the past. State BJP President Sukanta Majumdar said that the Chief Minister should dress up as a lawyer and the entire state should see him defending those who got jobs through illegal means. Opposition parties said the chief minister’s remarks were an admission that “he is part of the scam”.