Mumbai: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Friday made a statement before the Bombay high court to alleviate fears of private unaided school associations, which had challenged the state’s requisitioning of their teachers for duty. The Unaided Schools Forum, fearing coercive action, FIRs, and citing Mumbai Police action against several aided-school teachers for failing to report earlier this month, had petitioned the HC to challenge show cause notices issued by the EC for not reporting for BLO (Booth Level Officers) duties .The exercise is undertaken in Maharashtra as part of the third phase of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter list. The final electoral roll is scheduled to be published on October 7.“We have enough volunteers as of now and so do not need any more. The petitioners need not have any apprehensions,’’ former Advocate General Ashutosh Kumbhakoni appearing for EC submitted before a bench of Acting Chief Justice Ravindra Ghuge and Justice Gautam Ankhad. To this senior counsel Janak Dwarkadas raised an objection saying, what is not known is who these volunteers are. “They could well be our teachers,’’ said Dwarkadas expressing concern at the possible “coercive action’’ the teachers feared. Kumbhakoni said, the petitioners are private unaided institutions and anyway the exercise undertaken is of a “national duty’’. Dwarkadas said, does that mean anyone even a 75-year-old can be roped in when law specifically provides for employees of aided and govt run institutions being requisitioned.The HC recorded Kumbhakoni’s statement which it said can assuage petitioners’ fears for now and adjourned the matter for further hearing and called for affidavits in reply and rejoinder by then.Dwarkadas said the source of power to seek private teachers for duty cannot be the Right to Education Act, as sought to be suggested by the State.
