Today, On 17th April, The Supreme Court has permitted teachers removed from their positions in West Bengal to continue teaching until fresh appointments are made. The Court emphasized, “We don’t want students to suffer,” ensuring that education remains uninterrupted during this period.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court said today that students should not suffer because of the situation. It allowed West Bengal teachers, whose appointments were cancelled earlier this month due to problems in the recruitment process, to continue teaching until the new selection process is completed.
This relief is granted only to “untainted teachers” those whose names were not associated with any irregularities during the investigation into the 2016 appointments.
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The Supreme Court also established a timeline for the Bengal School Service Commission (SSC). Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna mandated that the SSC must publish advertisements for the new recruitment drive by May 31 and complete the selection process by December 31.
The Chief Justice stated,
“The state government and the commission shall file an affidavit in or before May 31, enclosing the ad copy as well as the schedule so as to ensure the completion of the recruitment process by December 31. In case the ad is not published as directed, appropriate orders shall be passed, including imposition of costs,”
The Court said,
“We do not want students to be left without teachers. Let them continue till the fresh appointments are made.”
However, this relief will not extend to non-teaching staff Group C and Group D employees among the over 25,000 personnel whose appointments were cancelled by the Supreme Court on April 7.
The bench explained,
“We are not inclined to accept the prayers of Group C and D employees as the number of established tainted candidates is higher in number. What has prompted us to pass this order for untainted assistant teachers is that students undergoing studies should not suffer on account of the order passed by this court,”
The Supreme Court’s decision to provide relief to certain teachers comes during a crisis in various state-run schools, where many teachers lost their jobs following the court’s ruling. Both the SSC and the Bengal government sought the court’s assistance, as the dismissals disrupted classes in these institutions.
In its April 7 ruling, the Chief Justice-led bench stated that the entire selection process from 2016 was “vitiated.”
The court noted in its order,
“In our opinion, this is a case wherein the entire selection process has been vitiated and tainted beyond resolution. Manipulations and frauds on a large scale, coupled with the attempted cover-up, have dented the selection process beyond repair and partial redemption. The credibility and legitimacy of the selection are denuded,”
The court clarified that candidates not specifically identified as tainted will not be required to refund the salaries they have received over the years.
It stated,
“However, their services will be terminated. Furthermore, no candidate can be appointed once the entire examination process and results have been declared void,”
Those found to be tainted during the investigation into the irregularities must return the salaries they have drawn thus far.
The Mamata Banerjee government challenged the high court’s order, which annulled all appointments, and advocated for a distinction between tainted and untainted candidates. Upholding the high court ruling, the Supreme Court remarked that any determination became challenging “given the scale of camouflage and dressing up done at each stage.”
The court concluded,
“We are convinced that the entire selection process was intentionally compromised due to the illegalities involved,”
This matter relates to the West Bengal School Service Commission (SSC) recruitment scam, where large-scale irregularities were found in the appointment of teachers and non-teaching staff in state-run schools.
The issue came into focus after multiple complaints and legal challenges were raised regarding unfair selections and favouritism in the 2016 recruitment process for Classes 9 to 12.
Earlier this month, the Calcutta High Court had cancelled the appointments of over 25,000 teachers, stating that the entire selection process was corrupted and violated constitutional principles.
Many of the affected teachers approached the Supreme Court, seeking relief and the chance to continue teaching until the government conducts fresh recruitment.
Case Title: THE STATE OF WEST BENGAL vs. BAISHAKHI BHATTACHARYYA (CHATTERJEE) , SLP(C) No. 009586 – / 2024 and connected matters