The Supreme Court (SC) will hear petitions on January 15 challenging a Calcutta High Court (HC) order that invalidated the appointments of 25,753 teachers and non-teaching staff in government and aided schools in West Bengal, as stated in a report by Times Now.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justices Sanjay Kumar and KV Viswanathan stated today, Tuesday, January 7, that two options are under consideration: Either a three-judge bench re-hears the case entirely or the matter is listed before the two-judge bench that had started hearing final arguments on December 19.
Chief Justice Khanna announced that the case would be heard at 2 pm on January 15 by a two-judge bench comprising him and Justice Kumar.
Previously, the bench had issued procedural directions, appointing four lawyers as nodal counsel to compile and submit case details electronically. The appointed lawyers include Astha Sharma, representing the state government, and Shalini Kaul, Partha Chatterjee, and Shekhar Kumar.
On May 7 last year, the Supreme Court provided significant relief to the affected teachers and staff whose appointments were invalidated by the high court over alleged irregularities. While permitting the CBI to continue its investigation, the court allowed it to probe even state cabinet members if necessary.
The court emphasised that no precipitative actions, such as arrests, should be taken during the investigation. However, it clarified that if the appointments were ultimately deemed illegal, the affected individuals would have to refund salaries and emoluments received.
Describing the alleged recruitment scam as a "systemic fraud," the top court instructed state authorities to maintain digitised records of the appointments.
The Calcutta High Court had previously cancelled the appointments, directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to investigate the process, and mandated a report within three months.
The controversy stems from the 2016 State Level Selection Test (SLST), where over 23 lakh candidates competed for 24,640 vacant posts. Despite this, 25,753 appointment letters were issued, sparking allegations of irregularities.
