The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear a batch of pleas today, Monday, January 27, challenging the Calcutta High Court’s decision that invalidated the appointment of 25,753 teachers and non-teaching staff in government and aided schools in West Bengal. This was stated in a report by Hindustan Times.
According to the cause list for the day, which was uploaded on the apex court's website, a bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar will take up the matter.
On January 15, several petitioners argued that the high court's ruling, which nullified the appointments, had negatively impacted the lives and livelihoods of the unaffected and innocent candidates.
Chief Justice Khanna acknowledged these concerns and stressed the importance of balancing the need to address illegalities with safeguarding the interests of those who were appointed without fault. He emphasised that wherever possible, cases should be segregated to prioritise the protection of the innocent appointees.
A total of 124 petitions, including one filed by the state government, are currently pending before the Supreme Court, challenging the high court’s April 2024 ruling.
During proceedings in December last year, the Supreme Court questioned the West Bengal government’s decision to create supernumerary posts of teachers and non-teaching staff, instead of removing those allegedly appointed illegally.
On May 7, 2024, the Supreme Court upheld the high court’s order regarding the appointments made by the state’s School Service Commission (SSC). However, the court allowed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to continue its probe into the matter, while ruling that no coercive actions would be taken.
The top court also made it clear that if the CBI investigation concludes that the appointments were illegal, the teachers and non-teaching staff whose appointments were cancelled by the high court would be required to refund their salaries and other benefits.
In its May 7 order, the Supreme Court highlighted that on May 19, 2022, the state government had issued an order creating 6,861 supernumerary posts to absorb wait-listed candidates. It was further noted that appointment letters to these candidates were to be issued based on the recommendations of the SSC, pending the outcome of the high court litigation.
Over 23 lakh candidates had appeared for the State Level Selection Test 2016, competing for 24,640 vacant positions, leading to the issuance of 25,753 appointment letters.
