The 2014 Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) list’s discrepancies have created a new stir in West Bengal. The controversy emerged as the list was published yesterday, November 14, amid the ongoing protests and investigation into the West Bengal recruitment irregularities. The list included names of political leaders like Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, BJP’s Dilip Ghosh, CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and more.
Among other discrepancies; names are missing, names are registered as X and Y or failed candidates are listed as passed. Following the release of the list, candidates again gathered outside the West Bengal Board of Primary Education (WBBPE) office at Karunamoyee to stage protests against the alleged inconsistencies on the board’s list; however, the site was once again cleared by the police force. “This is an intentional attempt to stall the recruitment process. They want to delay it by wasting our time in court,” claims Arnab Ghosh, a protesting candidate.
Confusion and chaos — what happened?
The list has left the 1.25 lakhs candidates who appeared for the TET 2014 in a state of utter confusion and uncertainty. “The list is full of discrepancies. Multiple namespaces are empty, categories are changed, failed candidates are shown as passed and vice versa. This is a complete mockery of the candidates and the education system here,” says another protesting candidate, Sima Nag. She further alleges, “Failed candidates have pass marks and candidates who are recruited already do not have qualifying marks.”
When asked about the names of the politicians on the list, she pointed out how it is a fairly common occurrence for multiple people to have the same name but the extent of that along with the ongoing investigation on the recruitment inconsistencies makes the situation very dubious. “The corruption is undeniable at this point. That they stopped the recruitment process altogether also raises concerns. We have lost years from our lives and are still here unemployed; the worst part is we couldn’t even appear for the exams,” adds Sima.
On the list, Mamata Banerjee scored a 92 and the Union Minister Amit Shah 93, who is additionally also listed as OBC. The list also includes TMC’s National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee and BJP State President Sukanta Majumdar’s name. As per reports, the President of WBBPE, Goutam Paul denied the featuring of politician names as a coincidence. “The board president says that mistakes were a result of a rush, but why the need for a rush now? Why wasn’t the list created in the last eight years?” asks Achinta Samanta, who has been leading the protests.
The one-mark discrepancy
The Calcutta High Court lowered the TET cut-off marks from 83 to 82 for reserved candidates last week and candidates allege that the list consists of names of people with 82 marks who have been recruited already. “This is extremely concerning because back in 2014 the qualifying marks were still 82. So how come these candidates got the job? This is raising alarms for us and we are not going down without a fight. All of us must be recruited as promised,” says Achinta, adding, “The amount of corruption that is visibly evident, does not allow me to believe a thing on that list.”
Candidates allege mistakes are intentional
As the ongoing dharna at Esplanade reached its 90th day, the candidates allege the ridiculousness of the list is an intentional means to delay the recruitment process. Arnab Ghosh alleges, “They want to postpone the recruitment and hold back on our salaries. Otherwise, how can it be that in a state where Class X and XII exam results come out so smoothly, would publish this ludicrous and laughable list? These people know the extent of the scam and that once they open the floodgates of recruitment process, they won’t be able to keep up.” He concludes, “Politics was supposed to be for the people but here they do it with the people. The mix of all the political colours here is painting and tainting our state black.”
