West Bengal teacher who lost job after SC verdict dies of ‘stress-induced' stroke
Subal Soren, 35, was a teacher of political science for classes 11 and 12 at the State-run Bagalaseni High School in West Bengal's Paschim Medinipur district, according to Suvojit Das, a spokesperson for the 'untainted' teachers' forum, Jogyo Shikkhok Shikkhika Adhikar Mancha (JSSAM).
He was also a member of the Adivasi community and hailed from Sarki village in Mohanpur.
Mr. Soren was notably one of the petitioners named in the review petition filed at the Supreme Court seeking a review of its April 3 judgment.
The apex court, on April 3, had upheld the Calcutta High Court's cancellation of job appointments from 2016, citing a 'vitiated and tainted' recruitment process by the West Bengal School Service Commission.
Protests had erupted among the sacked teachers across the State over their demand for the segregation of 'untainted' candidates and the reinstatement of their jobs without re-examinations. The apex court directed the West Bengal government to complete a fresh recruitment process for assistant teachers' positions by December 31 this year, till when the sacked teachers have been allowed to work with full salaries.
Mr. Soren had been a prominent figure at the forefront of the agitations and had been present in multiple instances when police clashed with protesting teachers.
'Subal Sir had no prevailing ailments. He suddenly fell very ill around Monday and was transferred to a private medical hospital in Kolkata a few days later. He suffered a stroke from the unbearable mental agony of having lost his job. This is the mental and physical toll that this sudden job loss is taking on us,' Mr. Das told The Hindu.
Mr. Soren was declared dead around 8 in the morning on August 15. He is survived by his wife and one-and-a-half-year-old daughter.
After his passing, fellow teachers who had been agitating for the last many months gathered near the hospital at the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass to pay their respects.
'We organised a memorial march from the hospital gates to Ruby Crossing with his remains on Friday afternoon, to honour his contribution to our movement. However, the police tried to hinder our march and even tried to speed off with the body despite us having consent from Mr. Soren's family,' Mr. Das alleged.
He added that teachers had to lie down on the road in front of the ambulance to prevent them from taking away the corpse prematurely from the hospital premises.
However, the Kolkata Police, in a statement, claimed that these allegations are false. 'Legal action is being initiated against those responsible for spreading such misinformation,' the statement said.
Subsequent clashes with the police had also allegedly taken place at Debra, where Mr. Soren's body had been taken for the last rites.
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