Taking serious action against the harassment faced by a retired primary school teacher to get his monetary dues over a year after his superannuation, the Calcutta High Court on Tuesday ordered to stop the salaries of two top officials of Dakshin Dinajpur district education administration.

Petitioner Dhrubajyoti Sarkar, a primary school teacher who retired in February 2020, prayed for the release of all his pensionary benefits along with accrued interest of 18 per cent on the delayed payment.

“The salary of the chairman of the DPSC (District Primary School Council), Dakshin Dinajpur and District Inspector of Schools (Primary), Dakshin Dinajpur shall remain stopped until further order,” Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay directed.

“There should be an end of harassment to the retired persons who were the teachers of schools, be it primary, be it secondary,” the judge observed.

The petitioner was transferred from a school in Dakshin Dinajpur district to another in North 24 Parganas district in the year 2008.

After the lawyer for the District Primary School Council of North 24 Parganas submitted that it has not received any paper in respect of the petitioner from that in Dakshin Dinajpur, the court said it appears that no step has been taken till date by the authorities concerned to clear his dues.

The court directed that the chairman of DPSC and the district inspector of schools (primary) of Dakshin Dinajpur be added as respondents in the matter and ordered them to file affidavits by September 13.

The two officers were directed to be “present personally also in this court for explaining some matters.”

Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay further said they have the liberty to engage advocates at their own cost and the DPSC or the state government will not bear such costs.

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