In a landmark judgment that could “strike at the roots of nepotism and corruption” in recruitment processes of the Government, the Calcutta High Court on Friday terminated the employment of Ankita Adhikari — the daughter of junior Education Minister Paresh Adhikari.
The Minister’s daughter was appointed as a political science teacher in a Government-run higher secondary school in Coochbehar in November 2018 bypassing petitioner Babita Sarkar, who had secured more marks than the defendant in a designated teachers’ recruitment exam held by the School Service Commission. Ankita had secured 61 marks in the exams while Babita had got 77.
Ankita’s dismissal came on a day when her father was subjected to grilling by the CBI which had earlier been directed by the court to get to the roots of the racket.
“The single bench of Justice Avijit Gangopadhyay also directed the defendant to return the 41months’ salary in two installments. She has been asked to deposit the first installment in the office of the Registrar General by June 7, the second by July 7. She has been asked not to enter the school while the District Inspector of Schools has been asked to stop her salary,” advocate Firdaus Shamim said.
Earlier on Thursday following the court order, the CBI had filed an FIR against the Minister and his daughter, under IPC Sections 420 (cheating and dishonesty) and 120B (criminal conspiracy). Charges under the Prevention of Corruption Act had also been leveled against them.
Reacting to the judgment petitioner Babita Sarkar said that “this is not only my victory but also the victory of those hundreds of others --- who had been deprived of their rightful employment and had been staging sit-in protests in various parts of Kolkata… this also proved that the judiciary still is the last hope for the people like us.
Another candidate who had appeared for Group C examinations but failed to get appointed despite her name appearing in the Government panel said, “Many merit-list candidates are still waiting to be recruited and she was withdrawing salary for being the Minister’s daughter… I hope that this is a lesson for the high and the mighty.”
Meanwhile, Minister Adhikari was being interrogated for about 10 hours till reports last came in the evening. When contacted by the CBI, officials said that the Minister was circumventing many questions. He was not disclosing as to through whom did he get her daughter appointed because he had not yet become a Minister when her daughter got the appointment.
Incidentally Adhikari, a former Forward Bloc MLA, had left the Left Front to join the TMC in 2018 after holding discussions with then Education Minister and TMC general secretary Partho Chatterjee. Soon after he joined the new party his daughter got an appointment.
Chatterjee who is the present Industry Minister too was facing the CBI probe in the School Service Commission recruitment scam. Already having been grilled for three hours on Wednesday he has been asked to appear before the central agency on May 25, sources said.
The High Court has already terminated jobs of more than 600 people and has also asked the investigators to find out how many more hundreds landed jobs through backdoors and whether there was a money trail to the irregular appointments.
The court found that hundreds of people were given jobs without them appearing in the selection tests held by the SSC which is otherwise an autonomous institution charged with recruitments in schools.
Chatterjee as the then Minister of Education had appointed a five-member panel to supervise the recruitment procedure and advise the SSC. All the five members of the panel were being interrogated by the CBI following the Court order. A judicial committee led by Justice RK Bag (retired) had clearly indicted the Ministers and the advisory panel and recommended criminal proceedings against them.
Meanwhile, in a related development the Division Bench of Justice Subrato Talukdar on Friday refused to provide any relief to Chatterjee who had approached the bench seeking protection against arrest.
