‘We've been fighting for 8 years’: Protest by teaching candidates in Lucknow nears fortnight

Candidates affected by the reservation issue in the 68500 teacher recruitment process continued their protest in Lucknow, with the agitation entering its 13th day on Sunday.

The candidates have been staging a protest at Eco Garden, demanding a resolution to what they describe as discrepancies in the implementation of reservation in the 2018 teacher recruitment process.

On Saturday, a group of protesting candidates surrounded the residence of Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya and raised slogans. The protesters, who reached his residence at around 8 am, demanded that Maurya facilitate a meeting with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to resolve the reservation issue.

They also demanded implementation of an order issued by the State Backward Classes Commission, amendments to the recruitment advertisement and the release of a revised result, followed by appointments for eligible candidates.

According to the protesting candidates, OBC candidates did not receive the benefit of the five per cent relaxation that they were entitled to. They have also objected to OBC, disabled, ex-servicemen and freedom fighter candidates being placed in the unreserved category.

An applicant from Unnao said, “68,500 teacher recruitment is the issue. The five per cent relaxation should have been given to all four categories. It is not justified to place OBC, disabled, ex-servicemen and freedom fighter candidates in the unreserved category.”

The protest comes after a meeting on 10 September in which the issue of alleged reservation discrepancies was discussed.

The protesters said they wanted the government to make the necessary changes in the recruitment advertisement, issue a revised result and take a decision at the government level to appoint candidates found eligible under the corrected process.

Police removed the protesters from outside the Deputy Chief Minister’s residence and took them back to the Eco Garden protest site in buses. The candidates, however, insisted that they wanted to meet Maurya.

One of the protesters, Ajay Kumar, said their demands included permission to meet the Chief Minister and implementation of the State Backward Classes Commission’s order.

“Our demand is that we should be allowed to speak to the Chief Minister and that the order issued by the State Backward Classes Commission should be implemented. We should also be given appointment letters,” he said.

Kumar said the candidates had been fighting over the issue for eight years and had repeatedly urged the government to implement the commission’s order and ensure what they described as their rightful entitlement under the reservation system.

Separately, on Sunday, Nagina MP Chandrashekhar Azad visited the Eco Garden protest site and met the affected candidates. He heard their concerns and extended his support to the agitation.

Azad said he would stand with the candidates at every level until they received justice.