The Art Of The Possible

The opposition in West Bengal is perfectly justified in demanding Mamata Banerjee's resignation for heading a corrupt administration.

- SHIKHA MUKERJEE

It is indeed a major hazard in politics, where voters may decide that any alternative is better than a corrupt regime that fleeces the vulnerable and then fails to provide a cover for its misdemeanors.

By taking responsibility for her ministers, bureaucrats and middlemen who took cash and promised tenured jobs to over 25,000 young people who had applied for a teaching career in state-run and aided schools and promising that she would find a solution that does not take away the jobs, as ordered by the Supreme Court, Banerjee has played the opposition in a counter-move that's quintessentially a classic art of the possible maneuver.

Ever since Banerjee declared that a settlement would be found, the opposition finds itself excluded from the dialogue between the state government and sacked teachers. The settlement must happen sooner rather than later for two simple reasons: the school calendar cannot be stopped and the schools need teachers and non-teaching staff to remain open.

The 'tainted' and 'manipulated' recruitment—descriptions used by the Supreme Court—created two categories of teachers. The 'qualified', or the majority recruited on merit, and the rest recruited through the racket. Whenever a temporary arrangement and the permanent solution happen, it will be a negotiation between Banerjee and the aggrieved teachers, who appear ready to clutch at any straws on offer, because the stakes for them are very high.