CM Suvendu Adhikari at Nabanna on Tuesday
The Central Civil Services (Conduct) Rules, 1964, which apply to the civilian staff of the central govt, prohibit employees from contesting elections to any legislative or local authority. A controversy had reportedly erupted in Mumbai in 2024 after Election Commission of India announced that it would closely monitor teachers of state-aided schools involved in political campaigning while neglecting their assigned duties. Under Article 102(1)(a) of the Constitution, MPs are disqualified if they hold any office of profit (govt post) under the govt of India or the govt of any state. Article 191(1) applies this restriction to members of state legislatures.
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From now on, teachers recruited in the state will not be allowed to participate in active politics or contest panchayat, municipal, Lok Sabha or assembly elections, as in other states,” the CM said at Nabanna. “The state cabinet has decided to incorporate a provision in the West Bengal School Service Commission’s teacher recruitment process, barring newly recruited teachers from engaging in active politics, “ Adhikari said, blaming the 34-year Left Front and 15-year “corrupt” Trinamool administrations for the “declining standards” of the state’s education system. He also accused the erstwhile Left and Trinamool Congress govts of “having a mindset” that was geared towards creating a “Greater Bangladesh”. Some said the decision infringed on a citizen’s right to participate in politics; others felt the govt would have to amend laws to implement the decision. Rule 22(1) of West Bengal Board of Secondary Education (Appointment, Confirmation, Conduct and Discipline of Teachers and Non-Teaching Staff) Rules, 2018, states, “Every teacher or non-teaching staff may, subject to the rules, regulations or orders for the time being in force and with the approval from committee, take part in any democratic process, including contesting election to Parliament, Legislative Assembly, Local Self Government, Statutory body, or voluntary organisation. ” However, under the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan Code of Conduct, teachers are prohibited from being a member of any political party or the state/central legislature. Senior advocate Samim Ahmed said, “The govt has to amend the laws (to implement the cabinet decision). Senior advocate Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharyya said any amendment to facilitate the implementation of the cabinet decision will be legally challenged. If that (amendment) comes, we shall move court,” he said. “If the govt wants to go ahead with its decision, it has to declare the teachers as govt employees, provide them all statutory protections that govt employees enjoy,” he said. It was not immediately clear what prompted Wednesday’s cabinet decision, but BJP seniors told TOI off the record that the party was concerned about the so-called “secular parties’ grip on the teaching community”. This decision aims to rectify these issues,” a state BJP senior said. Defending the decision, the CM said, “This is a major initiative to restore the quality of education in West Bengal, the dignity of the teaching profession and the sanctity of educational institutions.
“We have taken an important decision. In other states, teachers do not directly participate in politics. The CM clarified that the govt would not ask the current schoolteachers involved in politics to stay away from such activities. The restriction will apply to teachers appointed from now on. Wednesday’s cabinet decision follows a decision in Sept that will enable the state higher education department to transfer professors from one university to another. That decision led to the passage of West Bengal Universities and Colleges (Administration and Regulation) (Amendment) Bill in the assembly. But it has not been enacted yet, with legal opinion divided over whether such a law would stand scrutiny in court. Legal experts were not sure whether Wednesday’s cabinet decision, too, could withstand legal challenges. A teacher must resign before filing nomination to contest an election. If they bring in legislation, we will decide whether to challenge it or not. Such curbs probably exist in Mumbai. “If someone who now works as a teacher can take part in politics, how can one who will be appointed later be barred from joining politics? There will be inequality. Bhattacharyya pointed out that teachers in state-run and state-aided schools are grant-in-aid employees, not direct govt employees. However, Supreme Court has made it clear that grant-in-aide employees are not same as govt employees. The teaching profession has always been represented well — sometimes punching above its weight in numerical terms — in Bengal’s electoral politics, with even BJP sourcing some of its MLAs and also ministers from among schoolteachers. School education minister Dipak Barman, irrigation minister Arup Kumar Das and junior food processing and horticulture minister Amiya Kisku are all schoolteachers. “It is a fact that our party is not so well represented in this constituency. And political biases often creep into classrooms. He added that the cabinet had approved the measure as part of the govt’s efforts to restore the prestige of teachers and improve the state’s education system. Download the TOI App.
Kolkata: Schoolteachers henceforth appointed in state-run and state-aided schools via SSC would not be allowed to join active politics and would not be able to contest panchayat, civic, Lok Sabha and assembly elections, CM Suvendu Adhikari said on Wednesday. Today, the Bengal cabinet has taken a historic decision.