The West Bengal cabinet met on Wednesday and decided that teachers recruited via the School Service Commission will be prohibited from engaging in direct politics. The move, announced by CM Suvendu Adhikari, mirrors policies in several other states where government teachers are barred from political contests.
Swapan Mondal, General Secretary of the Bangiya Shikshak o Shikshakarmi Samiti, warned that the prohibition would be ineffective because teachers in the state are not yet classified as government employees. He added that without that status, the government cannot legally prevent them from contesting elections.
Bhaskar Ghosh, convener of the Sangrami Joutha Mancha, said he would not oppose the new rule if teachers were granted employee status. He noted that several ministers and MLAs in the current cabinet are themselves teachers.
The State Education Department will roll out the policy on April 1, 2026, after drafting the necessary guidelines. Teachers’ unions have called a meeting to discuss potential protests, while political parties in the assembly have expressed uncertainty over the rule’s impact.
The next step will see the Department circulate a circular to all recruiting agencies and an advisory to educators in the coming weeks, setting the stage for a possible clash between administration and teacher unions.