Following the Supreme Court’s verdict in the SSC 2016 case, the West Bengal government has issued a fresh notification. “Not tainted” candidates can now apply to return to their previous workplace officially.
The Directorate of School Education, Government of West Bengal, released a significant notification on June 20, 2025, in light of the Supreme Court’s ruling on April 3, 2025, concerning the SSC 2016 case.
This notification outlines guidelines for candidates who are not classified as “tainted” and wish to return to their former positions.
Candidates who fall under the “not tainted” category are eligible to apply for reinstatement at their previous workplaces. Many have already submitted their applications to the Directorate of School Education and the DI Secondary.
The Directorate has compiled a list of these applications and forwarded it to the DI Secondary for further action.
The DI Secondary is responsible for the verification of all applications, including those submitted directly to them. The following criteria will be assessed during the verification:
- Whether the candidate was appointed under SLST 2016 or 3rd RLST 2016.
- Whether the candidate is classified as “tainted” or accused.
- Verification of the candidate’s approved service status as of April 2, 2025 (the day before the judgment).
Candidates must provide the necessary supporting documents during the verification process.
The DI Secondary is required to submit a report to the Directorate within three days, adhering to a specific “Format A,” which must include the following details:
- Serial number
- Candidate’s name and designation (e.g., Assistant Teacher, Clerk, Group D)
- IOSMS Employee ID
- Confirmation of the candidate’s “tainted” status (Yes/No)
- West Bengal School Service Commission’s recommendation memo number and date
- DI approval memo number and date (including transfer information)
- Name of the school and district where the candidate was employed on April 2, 2025
- Confirmation of attachment of the last month’s system-generated pay slip
- Details of previous service, including the name of the department to which the candidate wishes to return
- Designation and address of the appointing authority at the previous workplace
- Name of the post/designation in the previous service
This notification is crucial for all candidates seeking to return to their former positions. They are advised to read these guidelines thoroughly and act accordingly.
Earlier, Supreme Court upheld the Calcutta High Court’s order to cancel 24,000 appointments of teaching and non-teaching staff made by the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) in 2016, related to the school jobs for cash scam.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna and Justice PV Sanjiv Kumar decided not to interfere with the High Court’s ruling, noting that the appointments were compromised by manipulation and fraud.
The court noted that “those who obtained jobs wrongly could be knocked out.”
The Bench also clarified that those already appointed would not be required to return any salary received thus far. Additionally, the Court mandated that a new selection process be completed within three months.
This case arose from alleged irregularities during the 2016 recruitment process conducted by the West Bengal SSC, which saw 23 lakh candidates compete for 24,640 posts, leading to 25,753 appointment letters being issued.
Several candidates who were denied selection challenged the process, alleging corruption, manipulation of merit lists, and favoritism in the hiring process. Complaints surfaced about the illegal appointment of ineligible candidates, with claims that recruitment rules had been violated.
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