Supreme Court Today (April 8) cancelled Calcutta High Court’s CBI probe order on extra posts in WB teachers’ recruitment scam. It ruled that courts cannot interfere with Cabinet advice given to the Governor under the Constitution.
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NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court of India today cancelled the Calcutta High Court’s order that had directed a CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) inquiry into the creation of extra or supernumerary posts in the West Bengal teachers’ recruitment scam.
The Supreme Court said that courts cannot question the advice given by the Cabinet to the Governor.
This case was heard by Hon’ble Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna and Hon’ble Justice Sanjay Kumar.
The West Bengal Government had challenged the High Court’s decision, arguing that the court had overstepped its limits.
While giving the order, the Chief Justice said:
“As per our decision dated 3 April 2025, in paragraph 52, it was noted that the matter related to CBI investigation directions for creating extra posts (supernumerary posts) will be handled separately. After hearing the lawyers, our attention has been brought to paragraphs 257 and 265 of the judgment being challenged.”
The bench reviewed the relevant parts of the previous judgment and pointed out that the issue of the Cabinet’s advice had not been directly questioned in the original petition.
CJI further said:
“We have looked at the points made in that paragraph. It is agreed that in the writ petition, there was no clear request challenging the Cabinet decision, which led to the West Bengal Government’s order dated 19.05.2022 (approved by the Governor). Also, there was no request to have that order investigated by the Police Bureau or the CBI.”
Referring to the official government note from 5 May 2022, the Chief Justice explained that the state government used its legal power under the West Bengal Act, 1997 to give jobs to candidates on the waiting list.
However, these appointments were said to depend on the final outcome of the pending court cases.
The Chief Justice noted:
“On looking at the note dated 5.5.2022, it shows that the government used its power under Section 19 of the West Bengal Act, 1997 to give appointments to wait-listed candidates. However, these appointments will depend on what the High Court decides in the ongoing cases. The cabinet had approved this decision even though cases were still pending in the High Court, and it was not possible to clearly identify and separate the candidates involved in wrongdoing.”
After carefully considering the matter, the Supreme Court made it clear that the High Court had made a mistake by ordering a CBI probe into this specific issue.
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The Chief Justice clearly said that the Indian Constitution does not allow courts to question whether the Governor acted on the advice of the Cabinet, or what advice was given. So, the High Court’s order was overturned.
He stated:
“Based on the discussion above, we believe that the High Court was wrong to ask the CBI to investigate the issue of creating supernumerary posts based on the cabinet’s decision. We note that Articles 74 and 163(3) of the Constitution clearly say that courts cannot question whether the Governor acted on the advice of the Council of Ministers or what advice was given. So, the High Court’s order is set aside.”
To avoid any confusion, the Chief Justice also clarified that this judgment is only about the decision to create extra posts and does not stop the CBI from continuing its other investigations.
He added:
“We want to make it clear that our comments in this order only relate to the instruction to investigate how extra posts (supernumerary posts) were created. These comments do not affect or apply to the CBI’s investigation or chargesheets filed on other matters.”
This ruling by the Supreme Court is an important reminder of the limits of judicial review when it comes to Governor’s decisions based on Cabinet advice, and it sets a key legal precedent on separation of powers between the judiciary and the executive.
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