The Calcutta High Court on Monday refused to interfere with the Election Commission’s decision to appoint primary school teachers as Booth Level Officers (BLOs) for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal.
Justice Amrita Sinha, hearing the petition, observed that there is no legal bar on engaging primary teachers for BLO duties. In her order, she stated: “The activities of the BLO are to be carried out in such a way that their teaching profession will not be hampered. As on this date, it cannot be ascertained as to the nature of work assigned to the concerned officer. The case has been filed under apprehension. Duties assigned to officers shall be strictly under the Comprehensive Instructions regarding BLOs as published by the EC in 2022.”
The SIR, recently conducted in Bihar, was meant to remove names of deceased or missing voters. It is now scheduled to be conducted in all states, including West Bengal. A letter regarding the same has been sent to the office of the Chief Electoral Officer. However, the specific nature of BLO duties has not been finalised.
Appearing for the petitioner, advocate Subir Sanyal submitted: “A number of duties are assigned to me—full-fledged day-to-day work—whereas I am a primary teacher. As soon as the appointment letter was issued, I came under the EC. I am under deputation for revision of electoral rolls. No duty period has been mentioned. Where am I to work? How can I discharge dual duties? My teaching job is from 10 am to 4 pm. The Supreme Court says teachers have to be drafted minimally.”
Counsel Soumya Majumdar, appearing for the Election Commission, countered: “It has been done in consultation with the schools and in line with the SC order. This electoral revision procedure is done six months before the date of election is declared. All circumstances have been weighed before issuing appointment letters. They will be given training and then put to work. Of 48,000 drafted, only 15 have filed cases. It is their apprehension that they will be called. The BLO goes to the house and brings information.”
To the petitioner’s concern about working without a break, the bench remarked: “The nation requires your service, what can be done? Why is it not possible to work on Sundays? Are you afraid that all the work will be given to you?”
A case had been filed last week in the Calcutta High Court alleging that primary teachers are being forced to perform BLO duties in violation of norms. Teachers claim that this additional responsibility is interfering with their teaching work and overburdening them.