A candidate who ranked second in the upazila merit list for the government primary school assistant teacher recruitment exam in Lalmohan, Bhola, has alleged that he was denied appointment despite being selected on merit.

Md. Faizul Alam participated in the 2025 recruitment examination for assistant teachers under the revenue budget of government primary schools. He passed both the written and viva voce examinations and was finally recommended for appointment.

A total of 256 candidates were finally selected from Bhola district, including 43 from Lalmohan Upazila. Faizul claims that all the selected candidates from Lalmohan, except him, have received their appointment letters.

In the first phase, 14,384 candidates from 61 districts were finally recommended for appointment. As the names of Faizul and many other candidates were missing from the first-phase gazette, the issue was reported by several media outlets. Later, after the excluded candidates staged protests in Dhaka, a second gazette was published.

Although the names of all candidates from Lalmohan who had submitted their documents appeared in the second-phase gazette, Faizul’s name was missing.

He said he learned from the District Primary Education Office that he had been excluded during the verification process.

Faizul Alam said, “I was finally recommended for appointment, but I have not received an appointment letter for reasons unknown to me. I ranked second in the upazila merit list. There is no problem with my documents. Believing that I would get a government primary school job, I had already resigned from a private educational institution. I am now unemployed and frustrated. I have also reached the age limit for applying for government jobs.”

He further said he had no criminal case or record of any offence against him.

“If candidates who are finally recommended are subjected to harassment in the name of an opaque verification process without considering their merit, then the hard work and preparation of ordinary students like us become meaningless,” he said.

Faizul has appealed to the Prime Minister, Bhola-3 constituency lawmaker and Speaker of the National Parliament Major (retd) Hafiz Uddin Ahmed, and the Education Minister to take steps to include his name in the gazette and issue his appointment letter.

Bhola District Primary Education Officer Aminul Islam said a total of four candidates, including one from Lalmohan, had been excluded from appointment in the district.

“Letters have been sent to the Directorate along with the documents of the four candidates. Necessary action will be taken based on the decision of the Directorate,” he said.