The education department and the teachers union are at loggerheads over the competency test to be conducted to give the status of state employees to the teachers employed in Bihar. After the announcement of a big movement by the teachers union, now the education department has also issued a new order. In the instructions issued by Director of Secondary Education Kanhaiya Prasad Srivastava on the instructions of KK Pathak, it has been said that the Education Department will take action against the teachers who join the protest against the competency test.
Action on protesting against competency test
The Education Department has written a letter to all the district authorities asking them to register an FIR under Section 188, Section 187 and other relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against the teachers protesting against the competency test. Besides this, the district authorities have been asked to identify the teachers who participated in the protests and initiate disciplinary action against them under departmental rules.
Announcement of protest in front of the assembly
In a letter written to the district officials, he has clarified that information has been received through various mediums that the employed teachers have announced to boycott the competency test on February 13 and hold a protest in front of the assembly. Since schools will remain open on 13th February. Therefore, in such a situation, if teachers leave schools and join such protests, it will become clear that the teaching work of educational institutions is being disrupted.
Action under section 141
In the order issued, the district officials have been told that if any kind of protest demonstration is organized by the teachers employed in your district, then necessary action should be taken considering it as ‘unlawful assembly’ under section 141 of the IPC.
If a teacher fails three times, he will lose his job.
It is noteworthy that the employed teachers have announced to boycott the competency test. Whereas the Education Department has given the status of state employee to the employed teachers and has made it mandatory for them to pass the competency test to become special teachers. However, the Education Department has given three options to the employed teachers to pass this competency test. If teachers are not able to pass this examination then they will be relieved from service. More than three lakh employed teachers are opposing this.
Petition filed in High Court in teacher competency test case
Here, a petition has been filed in the Patna High Court on Monday challenging the rules made by the state government for the competency test of local body teachers. The petition has been filed by senior advocate Yogesh Chandra Verma. Through this petition, the court has been requested to declare Rules 3 and 4 of Bihar School Special Teacher Rules, 2023 as illegal, discriminatory, unfair and a violation of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution of India.
A request was made to ban the examination
Through the petition, a request has been made to order a ban on filling the forms for the said examination and a request has also been made to ban the examination which is going to be held from 26th February. Senior advocate Yogesh Chandra Verma said that the Education Department of the State Government has issued a notification to this effect on December 26, 2023, which is also published in the Bihar Gazette, in which it has been said about the creation of cadre and efficiency test. Each teacher will be given three attempts to pass the exam.