A sacked schoolteacher who was preparing for the selection exams to get back his job died in Calcutta early on Friday, and his family alleged that stress over the job caused his death.

Subal Soren, who used to teach at a school in West Midnapore district’s Debra, fell ill on Monday and had to be admitted to a hospital off EM Bypass.

His elder brother, Gopal Soren, said Subal was worried about what would happen after December 31 if he could not crack the selection tests due in September.

Subal, who was a teacher of political science at Boulasini Vivekananda High School, featured among the 15,403 teachers who have been identified as “not specifically found to be tainted” after the Supreme Court on April 3 terminated the jobs of 17,206 secondary and higher secondary teachers of government-aided schools.

The apex court had said that teachers not specifically tainted could continue their jobs up to December, but had to pass the fresh recruitment test to continue their jobs.

Gopal Soren alleged: “Subal used to express his concerns over what would happen if he failed to qualify. He took ill over this anxiety. Doctors said he suffered a stroke. Whenever we called, he expressed anxiety over the future.”

The education department has decided to give up to 10 marks for teaching experience in the 100-mark recruitment test so that the teachers not specifically found tainted have an edge in the recruitment process.

They will also be given up to 10 marks for lecture demonstrations.

A member of the Deserving Teachers Rights Forum said Subal used to frequent the protest site in Salt Lake.

“Subal said he had applied for the selection test as he had no other choice,” said a member of the forum.

Mehboob Mandal, a spokesperson for the platform, said that not specifically tainted teachers were finding it difficult to prepare because they also had to take classes and check the scripts of the school examinations.