‘Final farce’: Nahid Islam says 1,000 primary teacher recruits denied jobs after intelligence vetting

National Citizen Party convener Nahid Islam has accused the Tarique Rahman government of denying appointments to at least 1,000 candidates selected as government primary school teachers following intelligence verification, calling the process a “final farce” in public recruitment.

Nahid, also the opposition chief whip, said the candidates had cleared written examinations and other stages of the recruitment process but were kept in uncertainty for eight months in the name of intelligence verification.

“The Tarique Rahman government has set a new example of outright farce even in the recruitment of teachers for government primary schools, often regarded as the last refuge for educated unemployed jobseekers,” Nahid said.

He alleged that the dreams of “at least 1,000 talented young people” had been shattered after they were denied appointment letters despite successfully completing the recruitment examinations.

Nahid said most of the excluded candidates had no criminal cases or general diaries filed against them at police stations.

He also claimed there was no information linking them to previous criminal activities or terrorist groups.

Despite that, Nahid alleged, they were excluded without a transparent or accountable process or any clear explanation of the criteria used in the verification.

“If a citizen, after demonstrating merit and qualifications and successfully completing every stage of an examination, can still be denied a job on the basis of an opaque verification process, it is not only an injustice to the young people concerned but also raises serious questions about the state’s recruitment system,” he said.

Nahid demanded that candidates against whom there are no specific and legally valid allegations be appointed immediately.

“We unequivocally demand that the appointments of all innocent candidates against whom there are no specific and lawful allegations be confirmed immediately,” he said.

He also called on the government to make public the criteria used during the verification process and explain why individual candidates were excluded.

Nahid has recently been critical of proposed changes to government recruitment rules, particularly plans to increase the weight of viva voce examinations. Earlier this month, he argued that giving greater weight to interviews could create opportunities for political influence and discrimination in public-sector recruitment.