Teachers’ union to boycott SAD-BJP candidates

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, January 18

Teachers under the banner of the SSA/RMSA Teachers’ Union have announced to boycott the SAD-BJP candidates in the upcoming Assembly elections. Members of other unions are annoyed with the state government over the regularisation of their services. Around 27,000 employees in the sate were hopeful of regularisation.

Before the imposition of the code of conduct, many unions had threatened to stage protests against the state government but due to the code all stirs were withdrawn. The SSA/RMSA Teachers’ Union is the first which have officially declared that it would not support the SAD-BJP alliance in the upcoming Assembly elections.

Members of the union have also not received their salaries for the past five months. They have also got posters printed to spread their message among voters. One side the poster also reads — Sadde sambhandh kise party naal nahi, kirpa karke saade kol vote mangan na aao’ (We don’t have any relation with any political party, kindly don’t seek votes from us.)

The union members have already distributed pamphlets and literature in this regard among voters in Hoshiarpur, Patiala, Barnala and other districts. Another poster released by the union titled ‘poll khol’ reads – I am a member of the SSA/RMSA/CSS Union working on a contract basis for the past eight to nine years. The Punjab government has betrayed thousands like me. The union also released another poster before the implementation of the code of conduct, which reads ‘If the state government does not regularise SSA/ RMSA/ CSS (Urdu) teachers and RMSA/LA/ RMSA headmasters under the Education Department and rather regularises them under society, then all these teachers along with their friends and relatives will boycott the SAD-BJP government.’

Ram Bhajan Chaudhary, president of the SSA/RMSA Teachers’ Union, said, “The government has been promising us for the past six months that we would be regularised. Hopes had risen when a bill was being passed regarding our demands, but the government failed to issue any notification or specific letters. We, along with our families, will boycott the SAD-BJP candidates.”