Jobless Teachers Launch Hunger Strike After Court Verdict

After a Supreme Court ruling annulled the employment of several thousand teachers due to a flawed selection process, affected individuals have begun a relay hunger strike. They demand justice after losing their jobs and allege mistreatment by law enforcement during protests at the district inspector's office.

A group of teachers dismissed following a Supreme Court ruling on Thursday initiated a relay hunger strike, challenging their job terminations. The judgment had voided a flawed appointment process, leaving many jobless and voicing their grievances.

Displaced educators and staff claim they are also opposing recent aggressive police actions against them at the district inspector of schools' office in Kasba, Kolkata. The incidents from Wednesday have fueled their ongoing protests.

The protesters, who have vowed to continue their strike, have been assembled outside the West Bengal School Service Commission office at Salt Lake. They allege police mistreatment, including baton-charge incidents during their demonstration. This situation arose after the Supreme Court supported a 2024 Calcutta High Court decision invalidating thousands of appointments made by the commission in 2016, describing the recruitment process as flawed.

(With inputs from agencies.)