West Bengal: SC invalidates appointment of 25,753 teachers
The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the Calcutta High Court’s April 2024 order cancelling the entire recruitment panel of the 2016 West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC), resulting in job losses of over 25,000 teaching (for classes 9, 10, 11 and 12) and non-teaching staff (for Group C and D).
A division bench comprising Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar noted that the recruitment process was marred by widespread corruption, making it impossible to differentiate between eligible and ineligible candidates.
The court ordered the state to initiate a new recruitment process within three months and allowed those not implicated in misconduct to reapply. Furthermore, it ruled that individuals whose appointments were revoked must return their salaries. Additionally, those who had previously held government jobs but left them for SSC positions can return to their former roles, provided they apply for a transfer within three months.
The Central Bureau of Investigation will continue its probe into the matter, and the Supreme Court also upheld the High Court’s order for an investigation against the state cabinet. On February 10, the apex court had reserved its judgement after hearing arguments from all stakeholders. CJI Khanna had earlier said that it was impossible to authenticate the accuracy of what would be the right information.
Throughout the hearings at both the Calcutta High Court and the Supreme Court, it became evident that most candidates secured their jobs legitimately. However, their lives have now been changed, as they must bear the consequences of a few fraudulent individuals who obtained jobs through bribery.